PROF. MANDEVILLE'S READING-BOOKS 

Are distinguished by the following peculiarities, which, it is believed, 
will favorably recommend them to the attention of parents and teachers. 

1. The exercises at the beginning of Part I. of the Introduction, 
adapted as they are to the understandings and vocal powers of the 
young, enable the teacher not merely to illustrate the different move- 
ments of the voice in good reading, but to drill his pupils to the proper 
expression of them ; and, as these movements are, as will be observed 
on examination, connected with obvious peculiarities of sentential 
structure, easily remembered, preparation is thus made to read intelli- 
gently the lessons which follow. 

2. All these books contain a studied variety of sentential structure : 
calling every moment for a corresponding variety of intonation. Most 
reading-books, in consequence of a prevailing narrative or didactic style 
in their lessons, cause the monotony which they should cure. By 
introducing as large a share of the colloquial and dramatic into the 
present series as was 1 deemed compatible with a complete exhibition of 
all the styles, the author has endeavored to force the pupil into the use 
of variety of tone. 

r 3. The punctuation in these books conforms in the main to the 
sense and the proper delivery of every sentence, and is a guide to both. 
When a departure from the proper punctuation occurs, the proper 
delivery is indicated. (See " Hints to teachers" at the beginning of the 
Introduction Part J.) As reading-books are usually punctuated, it is 
a matter of surprise that children should learn to read at all. 

4. Each book apart, and the series as a whole, are progressive : not 
nominally, but really progressive ; that is, beginning in Part I. of the 
Introduction, with the easiest reading in the language, the lessons 
continue to task the powers of the pupil more and more to the end. 
Part II. advances in the same manner from less to more difficult ; and 
having thoroughly mastered this, the pupil is introduced to the " Course 
of Reading ;" where he commences the study of the simple grammat- 
ical principles, so far as a knowledge of them is essential to reading, 
and also of the analysis of sentential structure on which all good read- 
ing depends. When he has exhausted the " Course of Reading," the 
" Elements of Reading and Oratory" awaits him ; in which he enters 
on the study of punctuation, modulation including the nature and laws 
of emphasis, and particular rules for the delivery of every sentence in 
the language. 

5. In the opinion of competent judges, these books are not less an 
aid to grammar and composition, than to reading. Reference is here 
more particularly made to the " Course of Reading," and the " Ele- 
ments of Reading and Oratory ;" and to those portions of these works 
in which the sentences, employed in the English language, are classi- 
fied and described, and copious examples of them adduced in every 
degree of expansion. (See commendatory letters from various sources.) 

6. While the author has been at great pains, to introduce as large 
an amount of useful and innocently amusing knowledge into his books' 
as his limits would permit, he has uniformly been earnestly intent on 
making the whole subservient to sound morality and religion : purity, 
patriotism, and piety. 



PROFESSOR MANDEVILLE'S 

SERIES 01 READING BOOKS! 

COMPRISING 

I. PRIMARY READING BOOK. 1 vol. 16mo. 

II. SECOND READER. 1 vol. 16faio. 

III. THIRD READER. 1 vol. 16mo. 

IV. FOURTH READER. 1 vol. 12mo. 

V. COURSE OF READING, or FIFTH READER. 12mo. 
VI. ELEMENTS OF READING AND ORATORY. 
1 vol. large 12mo. 



THE 



ELEMENTS 



OF 



READING AND ORATORY 



Verum illi persuasione sua fruantur, qui hominibus, ut sint oratores, satis putant nasci : 
nostro labori dent veniam, qui nihil credimus esse perfectum, nisi ubi natura cura juvetur. 

QtJlNCTILIAN. 



BY 

HENRY MANDEVILLE, B.B. 

PROFESSOR OF MORAL SCIENCE AND BELLES-LETTRES IN HAMILTON COLLEGE. 



A NEW REVISED EDITION. 

V 

NEW YORK: 
D. APPLETON & COMPANY, 200 BROADWAY. 

PHILADELPHIA : 

GEO. S. APPLETON, 164 CHESNUT-STREET. 

MDCCCXLIX. • 




\ 






\ 



* 



A 



0\ 



Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1849, 

By D. APPLETON & COMPANY, 

in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States for the Southern 



District of New York. 



r 



PREFACE 



Of all the departments of learning in our schools, there is none which, 
by general concession, is more important than that of reading and speaking ; 
and yet, there is none in which the instruction given is at once so arbitrary, 
so vague, so unprofitable. In every other, there exists some recognised 
standard of propriety, tangible, and always at hand, by reference to which, 
the student can accurately prepare himself for recitation beforehand ; and 
by reference to which, should he make a mistake, while the recitation is 
in progress, his teacher can intelligibly correct him : make him clearly 
comprehend the nature of the error into which he has fallen, and effectually 
guard him against a repetition of it. In writing, he must imitate his copy : 
in geography, he must implicitly receive the statements of his text-book, 
and studiously conform to the delineations of his map : in arithmetic, every 
process has its rule, which offers itself to him as an infallible guide, through 
all the intricacies and mazes of numbers : in reading and speaking alone, 
he is left to acquire a correct and graceful delivery as he may, with such 
imperfect light as his teacher, whose judgment may be riper, but whose 
scources of information are not better than his own, can throw upon 
his path. In truth, the only means by which either of them can deter- 
mine, that a given passage should be delivered in one way rather than 
in another, is a mere supposition ; namely, that such is the way in which it 
would be delivered by an artless speaker ; or, to adopt the cant phraseology 
of the day on this subject, such is the natural way ; or the way in which 
one would deliver it, who conforms to nature : a supposition, which, con- 
sidering the inexperience of the parties forming it, the extensive observa- 
tion and comparison of the best models of delivery, the cultivated judgment, 
and the nice critical tact necessary to form it, and withal the prevalence 
of bad examples even at the Bar and in the Pulpit, to say nothing of 
the vicious elocution of the multitude, is as liable to be false as true ; and 
whether false or true, it can be neither denied nor affirmed ; since there is 
nothing beyond itself, in the shape of an authorized standard, with which 
it may be compared. To conform to nature, or rather to know when we 
conform to nature, we should previously know what that nature is : what it 
prescribes : what it excludes. 

The inadequacy, I had almost said, the absurdity, of such a method of 
instruction in grammar, if method it may be called, would be apparent to 
the most indifferent thinker in the land. Imagine a student endeavoring 
to acquire a knowledge of its principles without a nomenclature, designa- 
ting and describing the parts of speech: without examples, illustrating 

1* 



6 PREFACE. 

them : without rules, showing their relation and government : in short, 
without any guide whatever to a knowledge of its facts and laws, except 
a vague reference to the conflicting practice of those who speak and write 
the English language : does not every one perceive that, with such means 
of study, it would be all but impossible to obtain a clear insight into the 
mysteries of the science ? or that, if some inquirer, more ardent than usual, 
should persist in the pursuit until success crowned at length his diligence, 
the work would consume a large proportion of his life ? Yet there is no 
difficulty here which does not meet the student in learning to read and 
speak by the same process ; the scene is changed, but the actor and his 
part remain as before. He must grope his way in the dark in the same 
manner : with uncertain footing, and at a venture. He can never be sure 
of his position, and he is as likely to move in a circle as to advance. 

Nor will it materially avail him, in the absence of a nomenclature and 
of rules, that he possesses in his teacher the very best model of elocution. 
From such a teacher he may acquire a good articulation, for this in some 
measure is subject to rule ; but beyond this, which though important is 
yet subordinate, he can derive no more aid from such a teacher than from 
any other immeasurably his inferior. Indeed, he will derive less, if the 
latter, with his imperfect qualifications as a reader, should happen to possess 
the superior tact as a disciplinarian : greater facility in winning the regard 
of his pupils ; in commanding their attention ; in exciting their emulation. 
In other respects the more and the less gifted teacher occupy, in relation 
to him, the same level. Neither of them can do more than superintend his 
exercises : neither of them can add any thing to the benefit he derives 
from the practice those exercises afford. Whatever may be his faults of 
modulation, no correction of theirs, however just, can, from the very nature 
of the case, be followed by improvement. To have ocular and auricular 
demonstration of this, we have only to enter one of our schools in city or 
country, when a class, containing perhaps a dozen pupils, is called up to 
read. Observe. The lesson, distributed among them, gives to each scarcely 
more than a single sentence for rehearsal. One of the pupils, reading his 
sentence, fails in the judgment of the teacher, to employ the proper delivery. 
He is now shown how it should be read, (that is, the teacher reads it for 
him, with, what he deems, the proper modulation,) and is commanded to read 
it again ; and this time, we may presume, he will read it correctly. But 
what then ? If this was the only sentence he ever expected to read, the 
correction might answer a good purpose. He would probably remember it ; 
and at the next reading, and still more certainly at the next, he would 
make no mistake. But when called up again, he has the infinitesimal 
portion of another lesson, to which no correction of the one previously 
read, is applicable ; or if it is, neither he nor his teacher is aware of it. His 
reading is again faulty, and is again corrected ; and so on with every suc- 
cessive lesson, day after day, the year through. Each correction is an 
independent one. Having its root in no settled principle, illustrated by 
examples ; falling under no general law, confirmed by reason and obvious 
facts ; it neither borrows light from the past, nor reflects light on the 
future. It guards the pupil against nothing but the specific error cor- 
rected : its whole force is exhausted on a single sentence which may 
never be read again, or if read, recognised as having been read before. 
It is therefore manifestly of no use, then or thenceforward. In any 



PREFACE. 7 

other branch of study, it would be the stepping-stone of a continually accel- 
erating progress ; here it terminates with itself : elsewhere a quickening 
spirit ; here a dead letter. 

These obvious defects of the prevailing method of instruction, and the 
enormous waste both of money and of time it occasions, have led a number 
of ingenious and able men, during the last sixty or seventy years, to inquire 
whether a better one could not be devised : whether, in other words, the 
facts and principles of elocution could not be systematized like those of 
grammar, arithmetic, &c, and hence taught in the same manner. Their 
works, which are before the public, and well known, propose for our 
consideration, two distinct systems : the one formed on sentential con- 
struction ; the other, variously modified, on a theory of Dr. Rush. Of 
these, the first is unquestionably the system of nature ; and that it should 
not have made its way into public favor, and become the basis of elemen- 
tary instruction wherever the English language is spoken, must be im- 
puted, not to any thing wrong in the plan, but simply to the imperfect 
manner in which, hitherto, it has been developed ; for, unfortunately, Mr. 
Walker, by whom it was first broached in his " Elements of Elocution," 
and by whom it was carried to a point not yet passed, and scarcely 
reached, by those who have followed him, stopped short with an extremely 
imperfect account of one or two sentences only, and arbitrarily applied, 
or expected the student to apply, the laws derived from these to every 
other, however unlike in structure. Hence his failure : acknowledged 
by himself in the Rhetorical Grammar which he published subsequently to 
the " Elements." His work, therefore, sustains the same relation to a 
complete system of Elocution, that would be sustained by a defective map 
of the state of New York to a universal Atlas; and, carrying the illus- 
tration a little farther, to expect it, with whatever diligence studied, to 
form a good reader or speaker, would be equivalent to expecting that a 
man, by looking at such a map of this state, should be qualified to describe 
the boundaries, towns, rivers, lakes and mountains, of every other state 
and empire on the surface of the globe. 

The other system, that derived from Dr. Rush, and confined, I believe, 
to this country, however ingenious, and though ably and fully developed, is 
rather, it must be admitted, a system of vocal exercises than of elocution : 
as such, its utility in the schoolroom is not readily seen. Should a person 
become thoroughly versed in its various movements, which is no easy 
attainment, he has not taken as yet one step toward a correct and graceful 
delivery of a single sentence in the English language. Suppose a sentence 
presented : the question is, with what vocal movements, or more generally,, 
with what modulation, shall it be read or spoken ? To this question the 
system gives no reply: the appropriate delivery is yet to be ascertained. 
These authors end, therefore, -just where Walker and others begin ; or if 
they proceed farther, and prescribe a delivery for a given passage, they are 
governed in so doing by no broad general principles authorized by induction, 
but by the caprices of individual tastes, or like the writers just mentioned, 
by questionable laws derived from a few isolated cases. — I may add, that this 
system is exposed to the serious objection of having a strong tendency 
to form an artificial and mechanical delivery. I have met with several 
individuals, whose voices, trained by its processes, very distinctly be- 
trayed it. 



8 PREFACE. 

Such are the exceptions which may be taken to the most systematic and 
elaborate writers on elocution : writers of the higher aim, and the more 
solid worth. Of others, it is scarcely necessary to speak ; for they attempt 
rather to mitigate the evils of the existing method of instruction, than to 
remove them by introducing another. Their observations are local, iso- 
lated, special : not without value in the particular instances to which they 
apply ; but apart as they are from principles, and incapable of generaliza- 
tion, they merely supersede the incidental and arbitrary dogmas of the 
instructor. 

On the whole, it must be acknowledged that the desideratum in the 
department of elocution ; the work which seizes, generalizes and arranges 
its facts, develops its principles, and declares its laws ; the work in which 
the public may universally confide as an exposition of true science ; the 
work on which the professor, the academical and common-school teacher, 
can lay their hands, assured that in it they have a safe guide in all that re- 
lates to reading and speaking ; the work, finally, which shall displace the 
prevailing inefficient and clumsy method, and banish it forever from our 
schools ; — such a work is yet to appear ; and when it does appear, it will 
doubtless bear upon its face the evidence of its mission, and compel assent 
to its revelations ; and the man who produces it, there can be as little doubt, 
will be hailed as the benefactor of the young. 

That the following work, which I have now the honor of submitting to the 
public, possesses this high and decisive character, I am of course far from 
believing. Yet, I confess, I am not entirely without hope, (founded on 
long and patient investigation, unbiased by received theories or precon- 
ceived opinions, and still more on having tested its utility, during the past 
two years, in the institution with which I am professionally connected,) 
that it may prove to be at least the herald of the morning : the day-star 
to such a sun. If it should, I shall be content ; though merely glimmer- 
ing for a space, where my successor will pour full-orbed effulgence. 

It will be seen, on examination, that the leading idea of Mr. Walker is 
mine ; namely, that the law of delivery must be derived from the struc- 
ture of the sentence. Mr. Walker, however, either because that idea 
was not a very clear one, or because he wanted leisure or patience for a 
wide, comprehensive and exact induction, satisfied himself, as I have already 
observed, with an extremely imperfect development of it. What he left 
undone, I have attempted to do : to give a complete enumeration of the dif- 
ferent sentences in the English language, and a description of their distinctive 
peculiarities of structure. This part of my work, which forms its base, 
is comprised in chapter fourth. Chapter second, on Punctuation ; chapter 
third, on Modulation; and chapter sixth, containing the Laws of De- 
livery, with a long train of examples under each for exercise, are merely 
derivations from chapter fourth. 

The chapter on Emphasis, (ch. 5th,) is the result of discovering, that 
the laws of delivery, derived from structure, are limited to termination and 
direction : to the former, in declarative, and to the latter, in interrogative 
sentences. In other words, I found that structure determined the modu- 
lation at the end of declarative sentences, and of their parts, and the 
general direction of the voice, through interrogative ; but not the modula- 
tion of the intermediate portions. This I subsequently traced to the nature, 
position and influence of emphasis ; my discussion of which, the fruit of 



PREFACE. 9 

laborious and protracted examination, will be deemed, I trust, satisfactory : 
few subjects have been treated hitherto with less precision : why, it would 
be difficult to explain. 

Having now made the student thoroughly acquainted with every va- 
riety of sentential structure, and the laws of delivery as derived from 
structure and emphasis combined, I introduce him, in chapter seventh, 
to the common reading-book ; where he is mainly left to apply for himself, 
the information obtained from the previous portions of the work. As a 
reading-book, I think it will be found inferior to none in use. In some re- 
spects, it is peculiar. The selections comprise sentences of every variety 
of construction, and in every degree of expansion, both in prose and verse. 
With most of the reading-books in use this is not the case. I have intro- 
duced colloquial pieces, as well as the more sustained composition of 
books ; and also several other species of reading, not usually met with in 
school-books : such as epigrams, anecdotes, preambles and resolutions of 
deliberative assemblies, advertisements, legal notices, letters, &c, &c. 
These are all written to be read, and I cannot perceive why we should 
not learn to read them ; but I have inserted them more particularly, to 
show that the construction of sentences is the same in every species of 
composition ; and that these sentences are subject to the same laws of 
delivery, wherever found : whether in low life, or high life ; in conversa- 
tion or in writing ; and in one kind of writing as well as in another ; in 
prose or verse. 

The chapter on Pronunciation, the latest written and perhaps the least 
studied of the series, though occupying the first place, is introduced not 
so much on account of its value, as to mark my sense of the importance 
of the subject. Distinct, easy, accurate utterance of elementary sounds, 
syllables, and words, is a fundamental and indispensable quality of good 
reading and speaking ; and yet how sadly is it neglected, beyond a few 
unmeaning and inefficient common-places, by a majority of the teachers 
of the present day ! However, better habits are forming. There are 
a few instructors certainly who seem, in this respect, apprized of their 
responsibility ; and we may reasonably hope that the time is not distant, 
when the elements of the English language will be expressed with Attic 
elegance. 

In bringing these prefatory observations to a close, it may be proper 
for me to say, that, although I have endeavored to confirm' every position 
taken in the following work, by a sufficient number of examples, or where 
examples were inadmissible, which is seldom the case, with sufficient 
reasons, it may appear notwithstanding, that I have sometimes spoken 
unadvisedly : if so, I trust that I have, at the same time, placed at the dis- 
posal of the reader, all that can be requisite for my correction. It may 
appear also, after more extended and searching examination, that some 
things I have advanced need additions, abridgment or modification. As 
I do not profess to have produced a perfect work, but merely to have laid 
the foundations for one, I hope such deficiencies may be regarded with 
some degree of indulgence. I should state that what may be deemed one 
of these, my silence on the subject of gesture, is the result of design : my 
plan, in the present work, limiting me to those " elements" which are com- 
mon to " Reading and Oratory." 

Something I wished to say, before concluding, on the bearing of what 



10 



PREFACE. 



I have advanced, if acknowledged to be just, on the art of composition : 
something on its relation to the general subject of style : something also 
on its application to elementary instruction in other languages, both 
ancient and modern ; soon, probably, to be tested by one of the most finished 
classical scholars in the country ; but having already extended my observa- 
tions to an unusual length, I reluctantly suppress what I might add on 
these points, and submit my work without further ceremony to the judg- 
ment of an intelligent and candid public : being very sure that, if it 
possesses value, it will receive proportionate approbation ; and that it 
can fail to be approved only because, in the opinion of discerning and 
just men less interested than myself, it fails to deserve it. 

Hamilton College, Sept. 1st, 1845. 



CHAPTER I. 



PRONUNCIATION. 

Pronunciation anciently included the whole of delivery. By 
modern usage, it is limited to the enunciation of single words.* 
It comprehends articulation and accent. 

SEC. I. ARTICULATION. 

I. Articulation, primarily, signifies the junction which takes 
place in the organs of speech when a sound is interrupted and 
thus separated from other sounds ; and, secondarily, by an easy 
transition from cause to effect, the distinct utterance of the vari- 
ous vocal sounds, represented by letters, diphthongs, triphthongs, 
syllables and words. 

II. By distinct utterance is to be understood, 

1. The expression of all the sounds which enter into the pronun- 
ciation of a word. 

The fault opposed to this, the suppression of essential sounds, is one of common oc- 
currence. Thus, h is often dropped in the pronunciation of where, which, what, and their 
derivatives: of shrill, shriek, shrunk, humble, and many others. iVis often dropped from 
government ; pronounced as if written goverment ; er from governor, and w, from regular ; 
as if written govnor, reglar. 

2. The exact expression of the sounds which enter into the pro- 
nunciation of a word. 

It is not sufficient, for example, that a should have any one of its sounds, but that 
specific sound which usage ascribes to it in a given position ; as in mane, man, mat. 

Bad articulation in this respect will leave the hearer in doubt as to the particular word 
used, or suggest one different from that used ; and the result will be either a perplexed 
or perverted meaning. 

3. The separate and complete expression of sounds, whether of 
letters, syllables, or entire words. f 

* Dividitur igitur pronunciatio in vocis figuram, et corporis motum — Rhet. ad Herenn. 
1. iii., ch. 2. 

Pronunciatio a plerisque actio dicitur ; sed prius nomen a voce, sequens a gestu 
videtur accipere — Quinctil. 1. xi., 3. 

Est enim actio quasi corporis quaedam eloquentia, cum constet voce atque motu.— Cic. 
Orat. 17. 

Pronunciation, in the modern acceptation of the term, is limited to the mode of 
enouncing certain words and syllables.— A ustin. Chiron. 

t A good articulation consists in giving every letter in a syllable its due proportion of 
sound, according to the most approved custom of pronouncing it ;, and in making such 
a distinction between the syllables of which words are composed, that the ear shall, with- 
out difficulty, acknowledge their number, and perceive at once to which syllable each 
letter belongs. Where these points are not observed, the articulation is proportionally 
defective.— Sheridan. 



12 PRONUNCIATION. 

Intermingling sounds is the fault here. Thus, the following sentence, He understands 
and obeys, would be read or spoken by many, as if written. He understan-zan-dobeys. 

It cannot be too often, or too earnestly impressed on the minds of instructors and 
students, that in reading or speaking, the sound of every letter which is not mute, of 
every syllable, and of every word, should be accurately and distinctly uttered before 
another is heard. Unless this be done, the delivery will not be intelligible : much less 
distinguished by that force and grace, to which good articulation contributes in so great 
a degree. 

III. To acquire an articulation which shall be at once accurate 
and tasteful, it is necessary, 

1. To get an exact knowledge of the elementary sounds of the 
language ; 

2. To learn the appropriate place of each of these sounds, as de- 
termined by usage, in syllables and words; and, 

3. To apply this knowledge, constantly, in conversation, reading 
and speaking, with a view to correct every deviation from propriety 
which we may detect in expressing them. 

Most writers on elocution give exercises for the improvement of articulation ; but 
manifestly, from the nature of the case, with little benefit to the student. A good 
articulation is not to be acquired in a day, nor from a few lessons. Practice should 
begin with the spelling-book, and continue through the whole course of education ; and 
even then, there will remain room for improvement. 

IV. The elementary sounds of language are represented by 
vowels, diphthongs, triphthongs and consonants. 

In describing these elementary sounds on succeeding pages, I have in a few instances 
differed from received opinions. I have enumerated some sounds as regular, which 
are treated by others, apparently for no valid reason, as irregular; I have adopted the 
middle a sound of Perry, and "have added a corresponding short sound, though found 
only in unaccented syllables ; I have denominated the vowel sounds succeeding a, when 
identical, as they often are, with those of a. as the alphabetical, middle, flat, or broad 
a sound of e, i, A.c. ; and omitting the mute, liquid, and semi-vowel distinction of con- 
sonants, I have substituted others more simple, and as I conceive more important. By 
the first measure, sounds, hitherto regarded as anomalous, are restored to their place 
in the language, and their pronunciation both in accented and unaccented syllables, 
determined : {see alphabetical short a below :) by the second, a separate place is 
given to a sound which few men, in practice, ever confound with alphabetical a long, 
(see middle a lung,) and an attempt is made to rescue a before r in unaccented syllables, 
as well as e and i before r in accented syllables, from utter perversion: (see middles, 
short, under a. e, and i :) by the third, a simple nomenclature is introduced, by which 
the same sound of different vowels is happily designated, and the confusion and per- 
plexity arising from distinct names, are avoided : by the fourth, a practical division 
of the consonants is substituted for one that is theoretical ; for one which, however 
interesting to the orthoepist and lexicographer, is useless to the reader and speaker. 

V. A vowel is a sound which may be uttered either alone, or 
in connection with another vowel. 

Some orthoepists define vowels as simple sounds ; others, as sounds which may be ut- 
tered with the mouth open ; and others, as sounds which may be uttered without aid 
from the organs of articulation. Each of these definitions is objectionable : the first, 
because at least two of them are compound : the second, because many of the con- 
sonants are uttered with the mouth open as well as the vowels : the third, because dis- 
approved by experiment. It will be found on trial that they require the aid of the artic- 
ulatory organs as really as consonants. The most that can be said, is, that they do not 
require the aid of all 'of them, nor to the same extent ; which is also true of the con- 
sonants. 

VI. The vowels are seven in number : a, q, i, o, u, y and w. Of 
these, 

1. A, e and o, are simple sounds : may be uttered alone. 

2. /and u long, are compound sounds : cannot be uttered alone, 

3. /, y and w are sometimes consonants. 



PRONUNCIATION. 



13 



1. A has eight sounds. 

1. Alphabetical 

2. " short, 

3. Middle 

4. " short, 

5. Flat 

6. " short, 

7. Broad 

8. " short, 



game, debate, spectator. 

any, many, miscellany, herbage. 

care, dare, fare. 

liar, regular, inward. 

father, calm, star, lava. 

fat, that, glass. 

all, law, salt, walk, also, water, war. 

what, want, was, wash, warrant. 



I. Alphabetical a long has this sound, 

1. When it ends an accented syllable ; as in maker, legislation. 
Exceptions. Papa, father, mama, lava, water, and proper names end- 
ing with a. 

2. When followed by a single consonant (except r) and e mute in the same 
accented syllable. 

Exceptions. Gape, are, have. 
Note.— In unaccented syllables, it often retains this sound. 

II. Alphabetical short a. This sound is treated by orthoepists as irregular. 
The reason for this, I presume, is, that it occurs under accent, only in the two 
words adduced in the table : a reason which will apply with nearly equal force 
to other sounds, enumerated notwithstanding among those that are regular ; 
as, for example, the sound of o in move. My reasons for treating it as regu- 
lar, aside from the one involved in what I have just said, are, 

1. That e in men is precisely the short sound of alphabetical a, as ac- 
knowledged by the best orthoepists ; (see Walker ;) and this is precisely the 
Bound of a in many. 

2. The improper diphthong ai, under accent, has this sound in numerous 
words ; (see diphthong ai ;) but why it should, unless alphabetical short a is a 
regular sound, I am unable to perceive. 

The admission of this short sound of alphabetical a among regular sounds, has, I con- 
ceive, an important bearing on the pronunciation of the unaccented terminations of a 
large class of words ; as age, any, able, ably, ace, ate, ately, &c , in most of which the 
long alphabetical sound is abandoned ; and in which, consequently, the short, as being 
the nearest, should be heard. 

III. Middle a long. I follow Perry in regarding this sound as quite too 
remote from alphabetical a long, to be classed with it. It is called middle a 
because its sound is about equally distant from that of a in game, and a in 
father. It occurs only before r and final e mute. 

IV. Middle a short. I am alone, I believe, in enumerating this among dis- 
tinct vowel sounds. It sustains precisely the same relation to a in care, fare, 

. dare, &c, that a alphabetical short sustains to alphabetical a long. It appears 
only in unaccented syllables before r ; but it is represented by e before r in the 
same syllable under accent ; as in herd, merchant, &c. : hence, the a in liar, 
friar, &c, is not accurately represented, as Walker intimates, by short u ; it 
has a sound a shade less guttural and broad ; as may be observed in comparing 
mercy (pronouncing e in which like e in merry) with murder, blunder, &c. 

V. Flat a long. A has this sound when followed by r or h in the same ac- 
cented syllable ; as in art, carl, dart, ah, bah. 

Exceptions. — A in this position preceded by w, has its long broad sound \ 
as in war, ward. 

2 



14 PRONUNCIATION. 

VI. Flat a short. " The short sound of middle or Italian a, (i. e. flat a,) which 
is generally confounded with the short sound of slender a, (alphabetical a,) is 
the sound of this vowel in man, pan, tan, hat, &c." — Walker. 

A has this sound for the most part, 

1. When followed by a single consonant, (except r and occasionally I,) in the 
same accented syllable ; as in ballad, capstan, massive. 

Exceptions. — Alien, ancient, cambric, chamber, manger, angel. 

2. When followed by more than one consonant, (except r and I, followed 
by another consonant,) in the same accented syllable ; as in band, catch, cramp, 
act, apt. 

VII. Broad a long. The regular place for this sound is before 11 ; as in all, 
hall, call, fall, ha.U, wall ; though it occurs in some other positions ; as in 
ward, bawd, chalk. 

2. E has five sounds. 

1. Alphabetical ~) .£ f me > scheme, theme. 

2. " short, J *p J pretty, been, England, faces, linen, 
bet, end, them, sell, method, 
where, there, ere, e'er, ne'er, 
herd, merchant, certain, consternation. 



3. " a short, \ § 

4. Middle a 

5. " " short 



rfl 



REMARKS. 
E is mute, 

1. When final and preceded by another vowel in the same syllable ; as in 
mute, rebuke, literature. 

2. When preceding I and n, in final unaccented syllables in many instances ; 
as in navel, drivel, swivel, weasel, open, often, heaven. 

3. When it precedes d in the preterit of verbs, and is not preceded by d or t ; 
as in lived, loved, revealed, justified. 

E is often in position final, where in pronunciation it is not ; as in theatre, centre, mas 
sacre : where final, it is often viciously treated, as if not ; as in the derivatives knave- 
ry, brave-nj, image-ry, nice-ty, slave-ry , fine-ry \ savage-ry, &c. ; all of which words Walker 
pronounces in three or four syllables; while others, correctly enough, he pronounces 
in two ; as in safety, ninety, surety. Webster adverts to this error of Walker, yet in 
several instances leaves it uncorrected. 

I. Alphabetical e long. E has this sound when it ends a syllable, and when 
it is followed in the same syllable by a consonant and final e ; as in meteor, 
secretion, severe, atmosphere, revere. 

Exceptions. Where, there, were, ere. 

This sound is often incorrectly superseded by alphabetical a short ; as in establish, 
esteem, especial, espial, espy, espouse, esquire, egotist, &c. ; in which words, long alpha- 
betical e should be invariably heard. It is also often viciously suppressed in the prefix 
pre ; as in precede, prevent, predict, &c. ; which are pronounced as if written pr-cede, 
pr-vent, pr-dict. 

II. Alphabetical e short. This sound, like that of alphabetical a short, is 
treated by orthoepists and grammarians as anomalous ; when the ear alone, 
one should think, is sufficient to establish its character as the short sound of e 
in scheme. The report of the ear is confirmed by the analogy of the French 
and German languages ; in which the long and short sound of e in scheme and 
pretty, are represented by the long and short sound of i. Short alphabetical e 
is heard in accented syllables in the words adduced in the table, and generally 
in the unaccented syllables es. en. ft. 



PRONUNCIATION. 15 

III. Alphabetical a short. For the propriety of so calling e in men, met, &c, 
see above. E has this sound when followed by a consonant (except r) in the 
same syllable. In many words, as in chapel, gospel, rebel, &c, (which are 
exceptions to e mute, No. 2 above,) this sound is dropped, when it should be 
distinctly heard. 

IV. Middle a long. This sound is only heard in the words enumerated in the 
table. Where, there, and ere have this sound, I believe, in consequeuce of their 
derivation : they should have been written with a instead of e. (See Diction- 
aries of Webster and Richardson.) Ne'er, being a contraction of never, the 
vowels of which are alphabetical short a, and middle short a, is very properly 
pronounced as if v/ritten nare ; for this is precisely the long sound into which 
the two short ones, being after contraction followed by r, should pass. 

V. Middle a short. If e in met is the short sound of a in mate, there can be 
little doubt that e in merchant is the short sound of a in care. The same reason, 
in fact, which should induce us to treat a in care as a different sound from a in 
mate, should also induce us to treat e in merchant as a different sound from e in 
met. In both cases, the letter r produces the same modification of sound. 

3. I has four sounds. 

1. Alphabetical ""j f chide, decide, sign, countermine. 

2. " e, I , , . J machine, ravine, caprice, shire. 

3. " " short, f aS neam ln 1 chin, rich, wit, hill. 

4. Middle a short, J L bird, flirt, stir, virtue. 

REMARKS. 

I. Alphabetical i. " This letter is a perfect diphthong, composed of the sounds 
of a in father, and e in he, pronounced as closely together as possible." — Walker. 
It has this sound, 

1. When it ends an accented syllable ; as in liar, reliance. 

2. When followed by e mute in accented syllables ; as in line, pine, wine, 
combine, canine. 

Exceptions. 1. In words of French origin ; as in machine, caprice, &c. 
2. In the unaccented syllables of many words, though followed by e mute ; 
as in engine, rapine. 

II. Alphabetical e. This, be it observed, is one of the vowels of which the 
preceding is composed. 

III. Alphabetical e short. Dr. Johnson, (seeintrodvction to his Dictionary ,) 
not taking into consideration the compound character of alphabetical i, pro- 
nounced this short sound wholly unlike it ; but Walker very justly observes that 
it " is the sound of e : the last letter of the diphthong that forms long i." 
Hence, I term it alphabetical e short. A similar derivation of a short sound 
from a part of a diphthongal sound, maybe seen in the short sound of u 'mfull, 
&c, below : called the short muffled sound of o. 

I has this sound, generally, before a consonant, (except r,) or more than one 
consonant, in the same syllable ; as in tin, tinder, wind, which, hitch. 

A common error in the pronunciation of i, for which we are indebted to Mr. Walker 
and his admirers, consists in giving to it, without reference to the origin of the word in 
which it appears, the sound of alphabetical e long, when it forms a syllable or ends one 
unaccented ; as in divide, indivisibility, ability ; which he pronounces as if written de- 
vide, in-de-vis-e-bil-e-ty, abil-e-ty. In these words, however, and in others, forming a 
very numerous class, alphabetical e short should be slightly but distinctly heard. (See 
Webster's Dictionary, introduction.) 

IV. Middle a short. As this sound of i occurs only before r, and is precisely 
like that of middle a short, and of middle a short e, I have given it the same 
name. The short u sound which many substitute for this, should be in all cases 
avoided as a vulgarity 



16 



PRONUNCIATION. 



4. has six sounds. 

1. Alphabetical 

2. " short, 

3. Muffled 

4. " short, 

5. Broad a 

6. " " short, , 






' tone, droll, wrote, remote. 

love, money, other, havoc, method. 

do, move, prove, who. 

woman, wolf. 

cost, former, wroth, lost, nor. 
i. not, top, robber, conglomerate. 



REMARKS. 

I. Alphabetical o long. O has this sound, 

1. When it ends an accented syllable ; as in romance, explosion. 
Exceptions. Do, to, who, ado. 

2. When followed by a single consonant and mute e ; as in tone, devote. 
Exceptions. Prove, move, behoove, lose, love, dove, above, come, done, 

none, one, pomegranate, some. 

II. Alphabetical o short. " The long sound which seems the nearest relation 
to it, is the first sound of o in note, tone, rove, &c." — Walker.. 

As this sound, that of broad a long, that of short broad a, and that of muffled 
short, occur nearly in the same positions, usage alone must determine which of 
them is employed in a given case. 

III. The long sound of muffled o is a middle sound between u in tube and u 
in full. It is, in fact, precisely the oo sound (as heard in groove) of which u in tube 
in part consists; (.see alphabetical u below;) and of this, u in full is a slight 
contraction. It occurs in a few words only : prove, move, behoove, (and their 
derivatives,) do, who, to, ado, tomb, womb. 

IV. The remarks just made show the propriety of treating the o in woman 
and wolf, and also in wol, the beginning of many proper names, (being exactly 
the sound of u in full,) as the short sound of muffled o long. It occurs, I believe, 
only in the words adduced. 

V. Broad a long. This sound of o is admitted by orthoepists with reluctance 
and hesitation ; but it is as well established by usage, at least in this country, as 
any other elementary sound in the language : the speaker who should pronounce 
o in cost, lost, or, nor, &c, like o in not, would expose himself lo merited ridicule. 
The positions in which this sound occurs can only be learned from usage. 

VI. Broad a short. This sound " corresponds exactly to that of a in what, 
with which the words not, got, lot, &c, are perfect rhymes." — Walker, 

Webster places both of the a sounds of o, very arbitrarily 1 think, under this 
head ; but the editor of his octavo edition candidly admits, that in some cases, o 
approximates to the broad a long sound. 

This letter is, in several instances, incorrectly pronounced. Home, stone, whole, which 
should invariably have the sound -of alphabetical o long, are heard pronounced, not 
seldom, as if written hum, stun, hull : does and doth, the o in which is alphabetical short, 
as if written doos and dothe : in the unaccented syllable of such words as creator, govern- 
or, &c.. the short broad a sound of o, is, with very bad taste, substituted for the alpha- 
betical short ; which sound, it should be observed, is the proper one in nearly all 
unaccented terminations: the prefix pro, like pre, noticed above, in the careless pro 
nunciation of some speakers, loses its vowel. 



5. EHias five sounds. 



1. Alphabetical. 

2. Muffled o short, 

3. Alph. o short, 

4. " e short, 

5. Middle a short, _ 



mule, pure, tube, cubic, union, 
full, push, put, cushion, bullock, 
dull, tub, lumber, adumbration, 
busy, minute, and their compounds. 
__ bury, and its compounds. 



PRONUNCIATION. 17 



I. Alphabetical u. This vowel is compound. It is composed of alphabet- 
ical e and muffled o, or eoo ; which, rapidly pronounced, will express it. U has 
this sound, 

1. When it ends a syllable ; as in duty, futurity, accumulate. 

2. When followed by a single consonant and final e ; as in acute, tube. 

II. The muffled or oo portion of alphabetical u, is heard in prove, move, 
&c. ; and of this, the u in full is the short sound ; as may be observed by 
comparing the o in wolf. Hence I call the second sound of u, the muffled 
o short. 

III. Alphabetical o short: so called because precisely the sound of alpha- 
betical o short. (See above.) This u, as well as the preceding, is followed by 
one or more consonants in the same syllable : as they occur in the same posi- 
tion, practice alone can enable us to distinguish them. 

IV. Alphabetical e and middle a short.- Busy, bury, with their compounds, 
and minute, are, I think, the only words in which these sounds occur. The 
pronunciation of minute is clearly improper. The u, when shortened, should, 
at least, have passed into alphabetical o short, after the analogy of rapine, 
and have been pronounced as if written minut, not minit. But custom, usage 
has settled the matter apparently beyond change. 

As to busy and bury, they seem to have preserved their original pronuncia- 
tion, while they lost their original orthography. 

Busy is derived from the Saxon bysgian, to occupy or employ ; and it 
should therefore have been written with an i instead of a u : it was so written 
by Wicklif ; as in the following passage: 

"But I woll that ghe be without bisyness ; for he that is without wif is 
bisi what things ben of the Lord, how he schal plese God ; but he that is with 
a wif, is bisi what things ben of the world, how he schal plese the wif, and he 
is departed." 

Bury is derived from the Saxon byrgan, to place in safely; and hence 
like the preceding word it should have been written with an i. Birie is the 
orthography of Wicklif: the following passages show this. 

" Another of hise disciples seide to him, Lord, suffre me to go first, and 
birie my fadir ; but Jhesus seide to him, Sue thou me, and lete the dede men 
birie their dede men." 

" The earth schook, and stoones weren cloven, and birials weren opened, 
and many bodies of sayntes that hadden slept rysen up." (See Richardson's 
Dictionary on the words.) 

The alphabetical sound of this vowel, it must be confessed, is sadly abused in pro- 
nunciation, and sometimes quite suppressed : abused by being pronounced like muffled 
o or oo in a multitude of words ; as in tube, literature, &c, and suppressed in such words 
as regular, popular, particular, &c. 

6. Y, when a vowel, has four sounds. 
1. Alphabetical i,~\ ( m J> tyrant, multiply, thyme. 



" e , las heard in J fanc ^' P hiloso P h ^ holy, envy. 

3. " e short, ( J lyric, hypocrite, pyramid, system. 

4. Middle a short, J [_ myrtle, martyr. 

REMARKS. 

I. Alphabetical i. Y has this sound at the end of an accented syllable ; 
as in my, tyrant. 

II. Alphabetical c. It has this sound generally when in unaccented syl- 

2* 



18 PRONUNCIATION. 



is in baby, fancy, muddy, angry, balmy, many, philosophy, happy, 
phrensy, &c. 

Exceptions. These are very numerous; as in all words ending in fy; as 
justify ; and others ; as multiply, occupy, butterfly, prophesy, gyration, &c. 

III. Alphabetical e short and middle a short. These sounds, as the exam- 
ples in the table prove, occur in the same circumstances. Practice must enable 
us to distinguish them. 

1. W, as a vowel, has no independent sound. It becomes vocal 
only in conjunction with another vowel with which it forms a diph- 
thong ; as in blow, cow, howl, scowl. 

VII. A diphthong is the union of two vowels in one articulation ; 
as ou in sour : a triphthong is the union of three vowels in one 
articulation ; as eau in beau. 

Diphthongs are divided into proper and improper, or digraphs. 
In the first, the vowels blend and form one sound ; as au in 
caught : in the second, one of the vowels only is vocal ; as ea in 
beat, oa in coat, and eo in leopard. I proceed to enumerate and 
describe them. 

1. Aa, ae, ai, au, aw, ay. 

1. Aa has two sounds. 

1. Of alphabetical a, j , , . ( Aaron. 

2. " flat a short, j { Balaam, Canaan, Isaac. 

2. Ae has one sound: viz., of alphabetical e; as heard in 
iEneas, Caesar. 

3. Ai has three sounds. 

1. Of alphabetical a, ) ( ail, bail, fail. 

2. " " a short, V as heard in ) said, again, fountain. 

3. " flat a short, ) ( plaid, raillery. 

In Britain, certain, fountain, and other words of the same termination, ai is pro- 
nounced by Walker and others like i in tin; but for what reasoa is not obvious ; and 
as for usage, the obscure sound of e, as in chicken and kitchen, is as often heard as any 
other, among polished speakers ; as it is unquestionably the legitimate short sound of 
ai in ail, bail ; which is nothing more than a representative of alphabetical a. 

4. Au has four sounds. 

1. Of flat a short, "1 f" aunt, gauntlet, laugh. 

2. " broad a long, I , , . J caught, fraught, taught. 

3. " " " short, f as nearCl m 1 laurel. 

4. " alphabetical o, J |_ hautboy. 

5. Aw has always one sound : viz., of broad a long ; as in 
bawl, crawl, scrawl. 

6. Ay has always the sound of alphabetical a long ; as in 
bay, day, delay. 



PRONUNCIATION. 



19 



2. Ea, eau, ee, ei, eo, eou, eu 

1. Ea has six sounds. 

1. Of alphabetical a long, 

2. " " a short, 

3. " middle a long, 

4. " " a short, 

5. " flat a long, 

6. '■' alphabetical e long, 

2. Eau has two sounds 

1. Of alphabetical o long, 

2. " " w, 

3. Ee has two sounds. 

1. Of alphabetical e long, ) 

2. " ' " e short, j a 

4. ^ has six sounds. 



ew, ey. 



as heard in 



r break, great. 

meadow, thread. 

bear, tear. 

earth, dearth, earl. 

heart, hearken. 
1 beaver, appear. 



) as heard j beau, portmanteau. 

j in ( beauty, and its compounds. 



as heard 



Of alphabetical a long, 1 

" " a short, 

" middle a long, I as heard 

" alphabetical e long, in 

" " ] e short, 



. j beet, creep, sweep. 
( been, breeches. 



deign, heinous, veil, 
heifer, leisure, nonpareil, 
heir, their, 
deceit, receive, seize, 
foreign, forfeit, surfeit. 
_ height, sleight. 



5. Eo has four sounds. 
Of alphabetical a short, " 
" " e long, 

" " o long, 

" " o short, 



{leopard, jeopardy. 
P P 
yeoman, 
surgeon, dungeon. 



6. Eou, when a triphthong, has but one sound : viz., of alpha- 
betical o short ; as in righteous, advantageous, gorgeous, outra- 
geous, &c. 

7. Eu has uniformly the sound of alphabetical u ; as in deuce, 
deuteronomy, feud, grandeur. It is often erroneously pronounced 
like oo. 

8. Ew has two sounds. 

1. Of alphabetical o long, ) ag heard . i shew, sew. 

2. " " u, ) ( crew, dew, mew. 

Like eu, it is often erroneously pronounced oo. 

9. Ey has three sounds. 

1. Of alphabetical a long, ) ( bey, prey. « 

2. " ' " e long, >■ as heard in -j key, ley, alley. 

3. " " i, ) (eye. 



20 



PRONUNCIATION. 



e long, 
e short, 



r 



^, l die, 

3. leu has the sound of alphabetical 



3. la, ie, ieu, lew, io, iou. 

1. la, when a diphthong, has the sound of alphabetical e 
short ; as in marriage, carriage. 

2. Ie, when a diphthong, has four sounds. 

Of alphabetical a short, "1 ( friend. 

" p lnr,fT i j-l chief, grief, 

as heard m«< . & 

sieve, species. 

. lie, pie. 

u ; as in lieu, adieu, 

purlieu. 

4. lew has also the sound of alphabetical u ; as in view, review. 

5. Io, when a diphthong, has the alphabetical o short sound 
of u ; as in marchioness, cushion, conversion, devotion, question, 
digestion. 

6. Iou, when a triphthong, has the sound of alphabetical o 
short ; as in precious, vexatious. It is often incorrectly pro- 
nounced after d as a triphthong; as in tedious, spoken as if 
written te-je-ous or te-jus. 

4. Oa, oe, oeu, oi, oo, ou, oio, oy. 
1. Oa has two sounds. 



Of broad a long, 

" alphabetical o long, 

2. Oe has five sounds. 
Of alphabetical a short, 
" " e long, 

" " o long, 

o short, 
" muffled o long, 



as heard in 



j broad, groat. 
( boat, loaf, road. 



oecumenic, foetid, 
foetus, oeiliad. 
>-as heard in«< doe, foe, toe, hoe. 
does, 
canoe, shoe. 

3. Oeu has the sound of muffled o long ; as in manoeuvre. 

4. Oi has six sounds. 

" avozrdupois. 

boil, toil. 

=»as heard m{ chamois, turcois. 

connoisseur, tortoise. 

choir. 

devoir, reservoir. 



Of middle a short, 
" broad a and of al- ) 
phabetical e long ) 
" alphabetical e long, 
" " e short, 

i, 
" w and broad a long, 

5. Oo has four sounds. 
Of alphabetical o long, 
" " o short, 

" muffled o long, 
" " o short, „ 



> as heard in 



door, floor, 
blood, flood, 
fool, moon, rood. 
_ hood, foot, wool, root. 



PRONUNCIATION. 



21 



bound, doubt, cloud, hour, 
cough, brought, thought, 
mourn, pour, though, 
enough, journey, tough, 
soup, surtout, through, your, 
could, should, would. 



6. Ou has six sounds. 

1* 

2. Of broad a long, 

3. " alphabetical o long, 

4. " " o short, 

5. " muffled o long, 

6. " " o short, _ 

7. Ow has three sounds. 

1. ) ( cow, vow, brown. 

2. Of broad a short, >• as heard in ■) knowledge. 

3. " alphabetical o long, ) ( blow, blown. 

8. Oy has only one sound ; viz., that of broad a and alphabet- 
ical e long ; as in cloy, boy. 

5. Ua, ue, ui, uo, uoy, uy. 
1. Ua has three sounds. 

( assuage, persuade, 
as heard in -j guard, piquant. 

/ victuals, victualer. 



1. Of w and alph. a long, 

2. " flat a long, 

3. " alphabetical e short, 

2. Ue has four sounds, 
1. Of w and alph. a short, 



* as heard in 



quench, conquest, 
coquet, guest, 
conquer, guerdon. 
fc ague, cue, hue, virtue, 
as in antique, dialogue, &c. 



► as heard in« 



" languid, vanquish. 

guilt, guinea. 

guide, disguise. 
_ juice, pursuit. 



2. " alphabetical a short, 

3. " middle a short, 

4. " alphabetical u, 

It is sometimes mute ; 

3. Ui has four sounds. 

1. Of w and alph. e short, " 

2. " alphabetical e short, 

3. " " i, 

4. " " u, 

4. Uo has two sounds. 

1. Of io and alph. o long, 

2. " w and alph. o short, 

5. Uoy has one sound ; viz., of w and broad a and e long ; 
or of w and oi in 5w7. It occurs only in one word : buoy. 

6. Uy has three sounds. 

1. Of 10 and alph. e long, ) ( obloquy, colloquy. 

2. " alphabetical e long, > as heard in •< plaguy, roguy. 

3. " alphabetical i, ) ( buy, and its derivatives. 



[a S heardinj^'1 uotation - 



* This sound has no representative. 



22 



PRONUNCIATION. 



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PRONUNCIATION. 23 

IX. All the letters of the alphabet, not hitherto described, are 
called consonants : so called, because some of them cannot be 
uttered at all, and the remainder but in part, independently of the 
vowels. They are as follows : b, c, d, f, g, h, i, j, k, I, m, n, p, 
q, r, s, t, v, w, x, y, z ; to which must be added th, ch, sh, zh, wh, 
ng : being plainly elementary sounds, and as such belonging to the 
alphabet, though not formally included in it. 

X. Consonants may be divided into two classes : real consonants, 
and substitutes. 

By a real consonant, is meant that which has a peculiar and 
determinate sound of its own, though it may assume that of 
another letter or a combination of letters ; and by a substitute, one 
which has no peculiar and determinate sound of its own, but uni- 
formly represents that of some other letter or combination of 
letters. 

XL The real consonants are, b, d, f g, h, j, k, I, m, n, p, r, s, t, 
v, w, x, y, z, ch, sh, th, luh, ng. 

Real consonants are either unchangeable or changeable. Un- 
changeable consonants are those which uniformly have the same 
sound : changeable, those which, besides having their peculiar 
sounds, in certain positions assume other sounds. 

A consonant is not changeable because, in one or two instances, it may assume another 
sound ; (which may be merely a vicious effect of custom ;) but only when it assumes 
another sound, in the same position, in all words, or generally ; and hence when this 
assumption can be traced to a general law. 

1. The unchangeable are, b, f, h, j, Jc, I, m, p, r, v, w, y, sh, 
th, wh. 

1. B. Its sound is heard in battle, rebel, bibber, cub. After 
m, (except in accumb, succumb, rhomb,) and before t, in the 
same syllable, it is silent ; as in lamb, bomb, thumb, debtor, doubt, 
subtle. 

2. F. F 'is heard infancy, muffin. In of, but not in its com- 
pounds, it has the sound of v. 

3. H. This letter is merely a strong breathing, which may 
be heard in hat, horse, hedge. At the beginning of the words, 
heir, heiress, herb, herbage, honest, honesty, honor, honorable, hour, 
after r, as in rhomb, rhetoric, and at the end of a word preceded 
by a vowel, as, in ah, oh, it is silent. 

In many words it is suppressed where it should be heard ; as 
in hostler, humble, exhale, exhibit, exhort, exhaust, exhilarate, &c. 

4. J. The sound of j is heard in James, jelly. It has the 
sound of y in hallelujah. 



24 PRONUNCIATION. 

5. K. The sound of k is heard in keep, skirt, murky. Before 
n, it is mute ; as in knife, knell, knocker, knew. 

6. L. This letter has a soft liquid sound ; as in sorrel, bil- 
low, love. It is often silent before d, f k, m, and v ; as in could, 
should, would, calf, half, talk, balm, salve. 

*I. M. M is heard in man, deem, murmur, monumental. In 
comptroller it has the sound of n ; and in mnemonic, it is silent. 

8. P. The sound of p is heard in pay, lip, puppy. It is 
silent before n, between m and t, and before s and t at the be- 
ginning of words ; as in pneumatics, tempt, ptisan, psalm ; and 
also in the words, corps, raspberry, receipt. 

9. R. The sound of this letter is heard in rage, brimstone, 
hurra. 

10. V. The sound of v is heard in vain, levity, ovation, re- 
lieve. It is silent in sevennight. 

11. W. W is heard in want, will, word, ween, reward. In 
answer, sword, and before r, as in wrap, wreck, wrong, it is silent. 

12. Y. The sound of y is heard in yonder, &c. 

13. Sh. The peculiar sound of sh is heard in shine, short, 
refreshment, relish. 

14. Th. This combination has two sounds: the one sharp, 
as in think, with ; the other flat, as in them, clothe. The h is 
silent in asthenic, asthma, isthmus, phthisic, phthisical, Thomas, 
Thames, thyme. 

15. Wh. This sound is heard in which, what, when, where, 
whale, <fec. The w is sometimes silent ; as in whole, who, whose, 
whom, whoop. 

2. The changeable consonants are d, g, n, s, t, x, z, ch, ng. 

1. D. The peculiar sound of d is heard in dead, meddle, 
ruddy. It assumes the sound of t in the termination ed of the 
past tense, when immediately preceded by c, f k, p, s, x, ch, 
sh, or q ; as in faced, stuffed, cracked, tripped, vexed, vouched, 
flashed, piqued. In handsome, stadtholder, and Wednesday, it is 
silent. 

The sound of j, which Walker assigns to this letter after the accent and followed by 
ia, ie, u alph., o and eou, as in radiance, obedience, mediocrity, arduous, hideous, &C, as if 
written rajiance, obejience, mejiocrity, arjuous, hijeous, is unwarranted, absurd and mis- 
chievous. Even in soldier, in which d is generally allowed to have the sound of j, it 
may be doubted whether d loses its proper sound. It is rather partially blended, in the 
rapidity of articulation, with the y sound of the i which follows it. 

2. G. The peculiar sound of g, (usually called its hard 
sound,) is heard at the end of words, and before a, o, u, I, r ; as 
in bag, log, rug ; game, gone, gull, glory, grandeur. It assumes 
the sound of j, (usually called its soft sound,) before e, i, and y ; 
as in gem, giant, ginger, Egypt, gyration, badge, edge, &c. Ex- 



PRONUNCIATION. 25 

ceptions are numerous ; as in get, finger, gilt, gimhlet, girl, give, 
giddy, geld, girt, girth, &c. Before m and n in the same sylla- 
ble, as in phlegm, gnash, malign, and before I in the words in- 
taglio and seraglio, g is silent. 

3, N. The proper sound of n is heard in manner, number. 
It assumes the sound of ng when followed in the same syllable 
by k, c, ch, q, x ; as in bank, ankle, cincture, distinct, bronchial, 
banquet, anxiously. After I and m in the same syllable, it is 
silent ; as in kiln, condemn, hymn. 

4. S. The peculiar sound of s is heard in sap, passing, use. 
It has this sound, 

1. At the beginning of words; as in sabbath, saddle, set, 
smile, spin, suit ; except sugar, sure, &c. 

2. After /, k, p, t ; as in scoffs, strifes, kicks, rakes, hops, 
hopes, bats, gates, &c. 

3. When double, except perhaps in dissolve, possess, and 
before the terminations ion, ia, ie or u, &c. 

4. In the inseparable prefix dis, except in disarm, discern, 
disdain, disease, dishonor, and their compounds : in mis ; 
and in the terminations ase, ese, ise, except wise, otherwise, 
otherguise ; and ose, use ; sive, sory, and osity, of adjectives. 

It assumes the sound of z, 

1. In the following words : as, is, was, his, has, these, 
those, and others. 

2. After b, d, g, v, I, m, n, r ; as in hubs, ribs, beds, buds, 
heads, rags, shrugs, serves, fills, clams, dens, bars, stars. 

3. When together with e, (not mute e,) it forms the 
plural of nouns, and the third person singular of verbs ; as 
in praises, riches, shoes, tries, fiies, dies, &c. 

4. After the inseparable prefix re, almost always ; as in 
reserve, reside, result ; generally in the terminations son, ser, 
sin ; and often in the terminations sy, scy, sible, ise. 

It assumes the sound of sh, 

1. In sure, sugar, and their compounds. 

2. When preceded by the accent and another s, or I, m, 
n, r, and followed by ia, ie, io, or alphabetical u ; as in 
cassia, circensian, expulsion, transient, mansion, version, cen- 
sure, pressure. 

It assumes the sound of zh, 

When preceded by the accent and a vowel, and followed 
by ia, ie, io, or alphabetical u ; as in ambrosial, brasier t 
vision, usual, pleasure, erasure. 
Exceptions. Enthusiastic, ecclesiastic. 

It is silent in aisle, corps, demesne, isle, island, puisne, vis- 
count. 

3 



26 PRONUNCIATION. 

5. T. The peculiar sound of t is heard in ten, met, written. 
It assumes the sound of sh, 

When preceded by the accent either primary or secon- 
dary, and followed by ia, ie, or io ; as in partial, patient, 
notation. 
It assumes the sound of ch, 

When preceded by the accent and s or x ; as in fustian, 
question, mixtion. It is silent before le (except in pestle) 
and en ; as in hasten, bustle ; in billetdoux, eclat, hautboy, 
mortgage ; and in the first syllable of cliestnut. 

6. X. The peculiar sound of this letter is heard in exit, ex- 
ercise, excellence, luxury, which always occurs, 

1 . At the end of an accented syllable ; as in the words 
quoted. 

2. At the end of a syllable followed by an accented 
syllable, beginning with a consonant ; as in excuse, extent, 
expense. 

It assumes the sound of z, 

At the beginning of a word ; as in Xenophon, Xerxes, 
Xonthus. 
It assumes the sound of gz, 

At the end of a syllable followed by another syllable 
under accent beginning with a vowel ; as in example, exert, 
exist. 

Exceptions. Doxology, proximity, and compound words of 
which the primitives end in x ; as in fixation, vexation, relaxa- 
tion, &c. The words exhale, exhibit, exhort, exhaust, should also 
be enumerated as exceptions to this rule, if x is to be pronounced 
gz ; since it immediately precedes an accented syllable beginning 
with a consonant. But as this sound is all but incompatible with 
the aspiration of h, and has led to the almost general suppres- 
sion of h in these words, I think it ought to be rejected. It is 
silent in billetdoux, and at the end of all words derived from the 
French. 

7. Z. The peculiar sound of z is heard in zest, zink, zone. 
It assumes the sound of zh, when preceded by the accent and 
a vowel, and is followed by ie or alphabetical u ; as in glazier, 
azure. 

8. Ch. The peculiar sound of this combination is heard in 
chin, chub, church. It assumes the sound of sh, in words from 
the French ; as in machine, chagrin, chaise. It assumes the 
sound of k, in words from the learned languages ; as in scheme, 
chorus, distich, Achish, Enoch. It is silent in schism, yacht and 
drachm. 



PRONUNCIATION. 27 

9. Ng. The peculiar sound of ng is heard in sing, song, 
sung, mingling. It assumes the sound of nj, when followed by 
e at the end of a syllable ; as in arrange, derange. 

XII. The substitutes are c, gh, i, ph, q. 

1. C. This letter is a substitute, 

1. For Jc, at the end of a syllable, and before a, o, u, r, I, 
t ; as in vaccination, cart, colt, cut, cur, college, cottage. 

2. For s, before e, i, y ; as in cedar, cider, cymbal, mercy. 

3. For sh, when followed by _ea, ia, ie, io, iou, and pre- 
ceded by the accent primary or secondary ; as in ocean, so- 
cial, species, spacious. 

4. For z, as in discern, sacrifice, suffice. 

is silent in arbuscle, corpuscle, czar, czarina, endict, muscle, 
victuals. 

2. Gh. This combination, when one or the other, or both 
of the letters are not silenty is a substitute for/; as in laugh, 
cough, trough. 

3. /. This letter, as a consonant, is a substitute for y ; as 
in the second syllable of pinion, &c. 

4. Ph. Ph is always a substitute for /; as in philosopher, 
caliph. 

5. Q. This letter is a substitute for Tc; as in banquet, con- 
quer, coquet. 



28 



PRONUNCIATION. 



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PRONUNCIATION. 29 



SEC. II. ACCENT. 



Accent, in general, is that greater stress which is laid on one 
syllable of a word in comparison with another. It is employed to 
promote ease of articulation, to distinguish different parts of speech 
having the same form, and to express opposition of thought. 
Hence, as it subserves any one of these ends, it may be denomi- 
nated articulator?/, discriminative, or rhetorical. 

1. Articulator?/ Accent. 

Articulatory accent is either primary or secondary : the first, 
distinguished from the last, by appearing at an earlier stage in the 
formation of words, by being indispensable to all words of more 
than one syllable, and by being produced by a more forcible utter- 
ance. A word never has the secondary accent until it contains 
three or more syllables ; and it may have three, four, and even 
five syllables, without having the secondary accent in a degree to 
attract notice ; as in relative, communicative. The greater force of 
the primary may be observed in such words as estimated, recom- 
mendation, heterogeneous. 

But few general rules can be given to determine the place of the accent. Many that 
are prescribed as such, have exceptions as numerous as the words which they embrace. 
The limited number subjoined, are mainly drawn from Webster. 

1. Monosyllables, though they may be pronouced with force, are necessarily without 
accent : comparison of one syllable with another being involved in the very nature of 
accent. 

2. Dissyllables submit to no general rule of accentuation whatever ; as may be readily 
ascertained by testing those rules which Walker, Murray and others apply to this class 
of words. 

3. Trissyllables, derived from dissyllables, usually retain the accent of their primi- 
tives ; as in poet, poetess ; pleasant, pleasantly ; gracious, graciously ; relate, related ; polite, 
politely, politest. 

4. Words of four syllables also, derived from dissyllables, generally retain the accent 
of their primitives ; as in collectible from collect ; serviceable from service ; virtuously from 
virtue ; dictionary from diction ; fancifuJness from fancy. 

5. In all cases, the preterit and participles of verbs retain the accents of the verbs. 

6. Words ending in tion, sion, tian, cious, tious, cial, tial, tiate, tient, dent, have the accent 
on the syllable preceding that termination ; as motion, aversion, christian, avaricious, ad- 
ventitious, commercial, geometrician, substantial, negotiate, patient, ancient. 

7. Words of more than two syllables, ending in ty, have, for the most part, the accent 
on the antepenult ; as entity, liberty, gratuity, propriety, prosperity, insensibility. 

8. Trissyllables ending in ment, for the most part, have the accent on the first sylla- 
ble ; as complement, detriment ; but to this rule there are many exceptions, and particu- 
larly nouns formed from verbs ; as amendment, commandment. 

Words ending with cracy, fiuous, ferous, fluent, gonal, gony, machy, loquy, mathy, meter, 
nomy, ogy, pathy, phony, parous, scopy, strophe, vomous, tomy, raphy, have the accent on the 
antepenultimate syllable ; as democracy, superfluous, odoriferous, mellifluent, diagonal, cos- 
mogony, logomachy, obloquy, polymathy, barometer, economy, theology, apathy, euphony, ovip- 
arous, aeroscopy, apostrophe, ignivomous, duatomy, geography. 

Such is a brief statement of the rules of accentuation which 
possess any value. 

2. Discriminative Accent. 

This, as I have already observed, is employed to distinguish 
different parts of speech having the same form : principally nouns 

3* 



30 



PRONUNCIATION. 



and verbs, but in a few instances nouns and adjectives ; as in the 
following list, which I obtain from Mr. Walker. 



ab'ject 

absent 

abstract 

accent 

affix 

augment 

bombard 

cement 

colleague 

collect 

compact 

compound 

compress 

concert 

concrete 

conduct 



abject' 

absent 

abstract 

accent 

affix 

augment 

bombard 

cement 

colleague 

collect 

compact 

compound 

compress 

concert 

concrete 

conduct 



con'fme 


confine' 


im'port 


conflict 


conflict 


incense 


conserve 


conserve 


insult 


consort 


consort 


object 


contest 


contest 


perfume 


contrast 


contrast 


prefix 


converse 


converse 


premise 


convert 


convert 


presage 


descant 


descant 


present 


digest 


digest 


produce 


essay- 


essay 


project 


export 


export 


protest 


extract 


extract 


rebel 


exile 


exile 


refuse 


ferment 


ferment 


subject 


frequent 


frequent 


survey 



import'' 

incense 

insult 

object 

perfume 

prefix 

premise 

presage 

present 

produce 

project 

protest 

rebel 

refuse 

subject 

survey 



3. Rhetorical Accent. 

This is a temporary accent, or, perhaps more properly speaking, 
the customary accent transferred from its place to another syllable, 
to express opposition of thought. 



Examples. 

1. He must mcrease, but I must decrease. 

2. What fellowship hath righteousness with ^righteousness ? 

3. Consider well what you have done, and what you have 
left wwdone. 

4. This corruptible must put on ^corruption ; and this mor- 
tal must put on immortality. 

5. The difference in this case, is no less than betwixt decency 
and mdecency : betwixt religion and irreligion. 

6. In the suitableness or ^suitableness, the proportion or 
disproportion of the affection to the object which excites it, con- 
sists the propriety or impropriety of the consequent action. 

7. Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descend- 
ed first into the lower parts of the earth ? He that descended, 
is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he 
might fill all things. 



PUNCTUATION. 31 



CHAPTER II. 



PUNCTUATION. 

What I have to say, under this head, rests on the following 
propositions : 

1. That our language comprises a limited number of sentences, 
having each a peculiar and uniform construction by which they 
may be always and easily recognised : 

2. That all sentences of the same construction, should, in strict 
propriety, be punctuated, without regard to their brevity or length, 
in the same manner : 

3. That the punctuation should always coincide with the deliv- 
ery ; so that the one may be a guide to the other ; or, rather, so 
that the construction of a sentence may determine the punctuation 
and the delivery at the same time : 

4. That every departure from the proper punctuation, by which 
the latter is brought in conflict with the delivery, should be sys- 
tematic ; that is to say, should be for reasons which apply to all 
cases of the same kind ; so that the design of the change in punc- 
tuation may be, in every case, obvious, and the proper delivery 
retained notwithstanding. 

In the remarks which follow, I purposely refrain from entering on the details of punctua- 
tion : nothing more being necessary at present, than the general rules which determine the 
proper use of the different pauses, and so prepare the way to understand the classification and 
description of sentences on succeeding pages. Their special application, I deem it best to re- 
serve until the subject of structure shall be under consideration. 

Pauses are employed for three purposes : 

1. To mark divisions of sense; 

2. To indicate the nature of the sentence ; and 

3. To denote unusual construction or significance. 

SEC. I. PAUSES WHICH MARK DIVISIONS OF SENSE. 

These are, 1. The comma, 

2. " semicolon, 

3. " colon, \ written thus 

4. " period, 

5. " double period, _ 



32 PUNCTUATION. 



I. THE COMMA. 

The comma is properly employed, only, in separating the 
members of a sentence, making imperfect sense until the end is 
reached ; or containing only one proposition. 

As a pause, it suspends the voice, in unimpassioned reading or 
speaking, sufficiently long to draw breath : under the influence of 
emotion, its time is indefinite. 

Note I. By imperfect sense, I mean sense imperfect according to the author ; for a 
sentence may be so constructed that the first half or the first quarter of it, if considered 
apart from what follows, would of itself make perfect sense, and consequently demand, 
in conformity to the rule, some pause different from the comma ; but, if considered with 
reference to the author's intention, the sense is imperfect, until what follows, be sub- 
joined. Observe this sentence : " We came to our journey's end, at last, with no 
small difficulty, after much fatigue, through deep roads, and bad weather." Take any 
part of this sentence terminating with a comma, and, if you look no farther than that 
part, you will have perfect sense, but not the perfect sense of the author : what follows 
the comma being absolutely necessary to the completeness of his thought ; as much so, as 
if the sentence were written thus : " At last, after much fatigue, through deep roads 
and bad weather, we came, with no small difficulty, to our journey's end." This is 
unquestionably a better construction than the other, but the parts are not more closely 
allied, nor more indispensable to the completeness of the author's thought than before. 
What then is the difference between the two forms of construction 1 None with regard 
to the author, and none, consequently, with regard to the use of the comma. The dif- 
ference between them respects the hearer or reader exclusively ; and that difference is 
this : the first at no point raises an expectation of any thing to follow ; the second excites 
and keeps up such an expectation until the close of the sentence is reached. 

Note II. That the sense is imperfect according to the author, may be known by 
several circumstances. It is imperfect 

1. When a subject, or nominative case, with its adjuncts, governs no verb ; as, " John, 
who was with me." 

2. When, if a period should be inserted at a given point, (as at either of the divisions 
in the following sentences,) verbs and nouns would be left without government, ad- 
verbs have nothing to qualify, and adjectives have no agreement ; as " He invaded the 
country | fought three battles | and took twelve cities. They built the house with an 
auger | a saw | and a hammer. God made man | erect | free ] intelligent | immortal. 
He was heard painfully | and impatiently." The part of the sentence, succeeding the 
period at any of the points indicated by the perpendicular mark, would be unintelligible. 

3. When a preposition with its government, would express no relation ; as in note 1st : 
We came | to our journey's end | at last | with no small difficulty | sc. 

4. When the first part of a sentence implies the remainder : having a word in it 
which raises an expectation of another about to follow ; as, as— so, when — then, where 
—there, if— then, in examples 9, 10, 11, and 12 of proper use below. 

Note III. The sentence or proposition may be expressed declaratively or interroga- 
tively; as, " Did we not come, at last, to our journey's end, with no small difficul- 
ty, sc. sc. V 

Note IV. By a proposition.it may be sufficient to say here, is meant that assemblage 
of words, or members, which is necessary to a complete thought: in other words, a 
proposition is a series of words expressing a complete thought. (See Class.) 

Note V. When I say, the comma as a pause suspends the voice, &c. &c, I mean to 
intimate that the comma does not necessarily represent a pause, but simply designates 
the place where, if necessary, a pause may be made : where the relation of the words 
is not so close, but that, if necessary, they can be separated long enough to take breath, 
or to produce some rhetorical effect, without injury to the sense. The pause should, if 
possible, be limited to those commas which mark principal or leading divisions of im- 
perfect sense ; inasmuch as its frequent repetition, together with the peculiar inflexion 
connected with it, tends to monotony.* 

* Sunt aliquando et respiratione qusedam moras etiam in periodis ; ut in ilia, in ccetu 
vero populi Romani, negotium publicum gerens, magister equitum fyc, rnulta membra habent. 
Sensus enim sunt alii atque alii, et sicut una circumductio est, ita paulum morandum 
in his intervallis, non interrumpendus est contextus ; et e contrario. spiritum interim 
recipere sine intellectu morae necesse est ; quo loco, quasi surripiendus est.— Quinc. 



PUNCTUATION. 33 

1. Examples of the proper use of the Comma. 

1. Industry, good sense and virtue, are, as a general thing, essen- 
tial to health, wealth and happiness. 

2. Uncommon expressions, strong flashes of wit, pointed similes, 
epigrammatic turns, especially when they recur too frequently, are 
a disfigurement rather than any embellishment of discourse. 

3. His dashing spirit, unused to control, and above submission to 
the loss of fortune, health and tranquillity, finishes the career of 
glory with a pistol. 

4. But it appears to me, that the exhibition of the first magis- 
trate, and of great statesmen, in caricature, must contribute to 
diminish or destroy that reverence which is always due to legal 
authority and established rank, and confessedly conducive to the 
most valuable ends of human society. 

5. Destitute of education, and without a true friend to guide 
them, they turned out unfortunately, ran away from their trades, 
entered into low situations in the army and navy, married impru- 
dently, or died early of intemperance. 

6. Rural employments are certainly natural, amusing and 
healthy. 

*1. What is it you call eloquence ? Is it the wretched trade of 
imitating that criminal, mentioned by a poet in his satires, who 
balanced his crimes before his judges with antithesis ? 

8. And where is the man that has not foibles, weaknesses, follies 
and defects of some kind ? And where is the man that has greater 
virtues, greater abilities, more useful labors, to put into the oppo- 
site scale against his defects, than Dr. Johnson ? 

9. As in Adam all die, so in Christ shall all be made alive. 

10. "When that which is perfect is come, then that which is in 
part shall be done away. 

11. Where the carcass is, there will the eagles be gathered 
together. 

12. If a more perfect union was formed, if justice was ad- 
ministered, if domestic tranquillity was secured, if the common 
defence was provided for, if the general welfare was promoted, it 
was all for the attainment of this end. 

13. That faith which is one, that faith which renews and justi- 
fies all who possess it, that faith which confessions and formularies 
can never adequately express, is the property of each alike. 

Let the student carefully observe the difference of structure in these thirteen sen- 
tences. The first six differ in nothing but length : the next four comprised in No. 7 
and 8 are interrogatives : the three succeeding consist, each of them, of two parts, 
beginning with correlative words ; as— so, when— then, where— there : the one marked 
No. 12 does not differ from those marked 9, 10, 11, except in having one of the correla- 
tive words understood, and in having a series of members in the first part : the last 
sentence, No. 13, is unlike the first six only in having a series of members at the begin- 
ning : all of them, however, agree in this ; that they contain simply one proposition ; 
or a sentence of which the sense is complete only when the end is reached. 



34 PUNCTUATION, 

2. Examples of improper use. 

1. This paper gentlemen insists upon the necessity of emanci- 
pating the Catholics of Ireland, and that is charged as part of the 
libel. 

2. In their day and generation they served and honored the 
country and the whole country, and their renown is the treasure 
of the whole country. 

3. Such is the simile of a hero to a lion, of a person in sorrow 
to a flower drooping its head, of a violent passion to a tempest, of 
chastity to snow, of virtue to the sun and stars, and many others 
of the same kind. 

4. It was the spirit of liberty which still abides on the earth 
and whose home is in the bosoms of the brave, which but yester- 
day in beautiful France restored their charter, which even now 
burns brightly on the towers of Belgium and has rescued Poland 
from the tyrant's grasp, making their sons and their daughters the 
wonder and the admiration of the world, the pride and glory of 
the human race ! 

In not one of these examples, (which are none of my own making, but all of them 
drawn from books,) does the comma separate parts making imperfect sense. In the 
first and second, the parts ending with Ireland and country, are complete propositions, 
which are followed by nothing to augment, or diminish, or qualify their meaning in 
any particular ; and the succeeding parts are similar propositions : connected indeed, 
with the preceding, but nevertheless complete ; and were it not for this slight connec- 
tion, they would be clearly not less independent, than they are essentially different, 
propositions. 

Again, in the third, the part ending with Hon, is a complete proposition, unqualified by 
any thing in the succeeding parts : the author's idea is complete. The comma is, there- 
fore, manifestly not the pause which, according to the rule, should be placed at the end 
of it. But if this makes perfect sense, so, for the same reason, does the next ; and the 
next. ; until we reach the end ; each of them in succession rejecting the comma, and call- 
ing for some other pause. It is true that a portion of the second, third, fourth, fifth and 
sixvh part, must be supplied from the first part ; but there is no common regimen : it is 
simply a case of abbreviation in view of the fact, that all the parts have the same sub- 
ject. When the subjects are different, as examples 1 and 2 above, they are necessarily 
expressed as in 2, or represented by the pronouns, as in 1. When even they are the 
same, they are not seldom, as in the following example, repeated : 

" Such was the man : such was the occasion : such was the event." 

Example fourth, it will be observed, contains a double series of members : the first 
ending with grasp, and the second with race. Each of these series has a construction 
precisely like example 3d ; and each should, therefore, be punctuated in the same 
manner, so far as any thing yet appears to the contrary : at least they alike exclude 
the comma. 

As perfect sense is made at grasp, the comma is not the pause which should be in- 
serted there ; but as the punctuation before a participle in such a position as that of 
the word making, deserves a more extended consideration than I can give it here, and 
may receive it more advantageously on a succeeding page, I shall at present content 
myself with what I have already said. 



CASES IN WHICH THE COMMA IS NOT INSERTED WHERE A PAUSE MAY 
BE MADE. 

The comma being mainly designed to subserve perspicuity, it 
might be expected, that, where the sense is in no danger of being 
obscured by its suppression, though a pause may be made at the 



PUNCTUATION. 35 

place, and often is indispensable, it would be omitted. Such is the 
case ; and with a view to emphasis, (hereafter to be discussed, 
and with which punctuation is closely connected,) as well as the 
importance of knowing all the positions of the pauses, to one who 
wishes to speak correctly, I will notice a few instances of this. 

1. When the subject of a sentence stands at the beginning, is 
not one of the pronouns, and has either nothing between it and the 
verb, or merely a single word, as in example 3d, or a short insepa- 
rable adjunct, as in example 4th, the comma is not inserted, though 
a pause must frequently be made : e. g. 

1. " Industry is the guardian of innocence." 2. "Necessity is 
the mother of invention." 3. " Virtue therefore is its own reward." 
4. " The tender mercies of the wicked are cruel." 

It should be observed here, however, that the pause is necessary after the subject, 
onlv, when it is under emphasis : a fact which has hitherto escaped the attention of 
writers on elocution. Place the emphasis on the verb or any succeeding word, and the 
pause disappears. This is the reason that the pronouns, though the subject of the sen- 
tence, and placed at the beginning, like " it," at the beginning of this note, are not 
followed by a pause, except when a special effort is made to render them emphatic. 

2. When a part (of a sentence) making imperfect sense, is short, 
and is followed by another part beginning with a relative pronoun, 
restraining the meaning of its antecedent, the comma is always 
omitted, though a pause may be made : e. g. " Self-denial is the 
sacrifice which virtue must make." " A man who is of a detracting 
spirit, will misconstrue the most innocent words that can be put 
together." 

3. Before and after such words as then, therefore, thus, hence, 
&c, the comma is suppressed for the most part, though a pause 
may be necessary : e. g. 

" Wherefore I was grieved with that generation." "Let us 
therefore come boldly unto a throne of grace." " Being then made 
free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness." " But 
now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye 
have your fruit unto holiness." 

4. The comma is frequently omitted, though a pause must be 
made, between the parts of a sentence transposed, or having the 
natural order reversed : e. g. 

" In the multitude of my thoughts within me thy comforts de- 
light my soul." " In the morning it flourisheth : in the evening it 
is cut down." 

A pause is necessary in these sentences after me, morning and evening. 

5. A pause may be made between parts which may be trans- 
posed without injury to the sense, although they are not trans- 
posed ; and although the comma is seldom, I believe, inserted in 
such circumstances. Thus transposition removed from one of the 
sentences above, it would read as follows : "It flourisheth in the 



36 PUNCTUATION. 

morning : it is cut down in the evening ;" and a pause may be 
made with propriety before in, in each member of the sentence. 

It will be seen, hereafter, that the effect of emphasis is precisely the same, at such 
a point in the sentence, as at any at which the admission of the comma is not disputed. 
In this view, the fact is one which it is important to remember. 

II THE SEMICOLON. 

The semicolon properly separates the parts of a sentence making, 
perfect sense ; or distinct though related propositions, connected 
by conjunctions, adverbs, or relative pronouns, expressed. It is 
relatively twice the length of the comma : under the influence of 
passion, it has no determinate time. 

Note 1. The first part is always complete in its construction, except in poetry, which en- 
joys a license in this respect as in many others, and in broken prose of the passions, which 
often leaves the imagination to supply what is left unsaid: the second part, and every suc- 
ceeding part, are also often complete in their construction ; but almost as often, if not quite, 
they must be completed by supplying a portion understood from the first part. 

It should be observed, that these principal parts or divisions of a sentence may have sub- 
parts of the same nature. 

Note 2. The sense is known to be perfect when, a period being inserted at a given point, 
what succeeds makes sense: or forms a distinct proposition. 

Note 3. The rule above given for the insertion of the semicolon differs in terms only from 
that given in the earlier edition of this work. As the student may desire to compare them, 
and as a comparison may give him some additional light, I subjoin the old rule in the margin.* 

1. Examples of the proper use of the Semicolon. 

1. I would have your papers consist also of all things which may 
be necessary or useful to any part of society ; and the mechanic 
arts should have their place as well as the liberal. 

2. He has annexed a secret pleasure to any thing that is new or 
uncommon, that he might encourage us in the pursuit after know- 
ledge, and engage us to search into the wonders of creation ; for 
every new idea brings such a pleasure along with it, as rewards 
any pains we have taken in the acquisition, and consequently serves 
as a motive to put us on fresh discoveries. 

3. The person he chanced to see, was, to appearance, an old, 
sordid, blind man ; but upon his following him from place to place, 
he at last found, by his own confession, that he was Plutus, the 

* The semicolon properly separates the parts of a sentence making perfect sense, and con- 
nected, not as members of the same regimen, 12 or of the same proposition, 4 but of a different 
regimen, and of distinct though related propositions, by conjunctions, adverbs, or relative pro- 
nouns, expressed. It is relatively twice the length of the comma : under the influence of pas- 
sion, it has no determinate tune. 

a By common regimen, I mean the common dependence (for instance) of verbs, in different members of the 
sentence, but in the sarco mood aud tense, and connected by conjunctions expressed or understood, on the 
same subject or nominative case : e.g. " -But he held his peace, and answered nothing - ." 

The difference between this construction and that of the following sentence, in which there is no common 
regimen, but distinct propositions are given, is obvious. " And it was the third hour; and they crucified him." 

6 " I would have your papers consist also of all things which may be necessary or useful to society." 
Which., in this sentence, connects members of a different regimeu but of the same proposition. Or connects 
members of the same regimen and proposition. 

" I would have your papers consist also of all things which may be necessary or useful to society; and the 
mechanic arts should have their place as well as the liberal." And here connects members of a different 
regimen and of distinct though related propositions. 



PUNCTUATION. 87 

god of riches ; and that he was just come out of the house of a 
miser. 

4. All superiority and pre-eminence that one man can have over 
airother, may be reduced to the notion of quality ; which, consid- 
ered at large, is either that of fortune, body, or mind. 

5. The mode of reasoning more generally used, and most suited 
to the train of popular speaking, is what is called the synthetic ; 
when the point to be proved is fairly laid down, and one argument 
after another is made to bear upon it, till the hearers be fully con- 
vinced. 

6. By-and-by, Clodius met him on the road, on horseback, like 
a man prepared for action ; whilst Milo is travelling in a carriage 
with his wife, wrapped up in his cloak, embarrassed with baggage, 
and attended by a great train of women, servants and boys. 

7. Consider whether it can be illustrated to advantage by point- 
ing out examples, or appealing to the feelings of the hearers ; that 
thus, a definite, precise, circumstantial view may be afforded of the 
doctrine to be inculcated. , 

8. But besides this consideration, there is another of still higher 
importance ; though I am not sure of its being attended to as much 
as it deserves ; namely, that from the fountain of real and genuine 
virtue are drawn those sentiments which will ever be the most 
powerful in affecting the hearts of others. 

9. I must therefore desire the reader to remember, that by the 
pleasures of the imagination, I meant only such pleasures as arise 
originally from sight ; and that I divide these pleasures into two 
kinds. 

10. Let it be the study of public speakers, in addressing any 
popular assembly, to be previously masters of the business on 
which they are to speak ; to be well provided with matter and 
argument ; and to rest upon these the chief stress. 

11. Knowing this : thM the law is not made for a righteous man, 
but for the lawless and disobedient ; for the ungodly and for sin- 
ners ; for unholy and profane ; for murderers of fathers and mur- 
derers of mothers ; for manslayers ; for whoremongers ; for them 
that defile themselves with mankind ; for men-stealers ; for liars ; 
for perjured persons ; and* if there be any other thing that is con- 
trary to sound doctrine [for that.] 

12. And besides this, giving all diligence, add, to your faith, 
virtue ; and to virtue, knowledge ; and to knowledge, temperance ; 
and to temperance, patience ; and to patience, godliness ; and to 
godliness, brotherly kindness ; and to brotherly kindness, chanty. 

* If the connective is expressed before the last part of a series, it is sufficient for the rule. 

4 



38 PUNCTUATION. 

2. Examples of improper use. 

1. When an author is always calling on us to enter into trans- 
ports which he has done nothing to inspire ; we are both disgusted 
and enraged at him. 

2. Vexed at the arbitral proceedings of the Assembly ; willing 
to escape from a town where good people pointed with horror at 
his freedom ; indignant also at the tyranny of his brother, who, 
passionate as a master, often beat his apprentice ; Benjamin 
Franklin, then but seventeen years old, sailed clandestinely for 
New York. 

3. The soil of a Republic sprouts with the rankest fertility; it 
has been sown with dragon's teeth. To lessen the hopes of usurp- 
ing demagogues, we must enlighten, animate and combine the 
spirits of freemen ; we must fortify and guard the constitutional 
ramparts about liberty. 

4. I put these together, both because they fall nearly under the 
same rules, and because they commonly answer the same purpose ; 
serving to illustrate the cause or the subject of which the orator 
treats before he proceeds to argue either on one side or the other. 

5. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the 
name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost ; 
teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded 
you. 

6 . History, as it has been written, is the genealogy of princes ; 
the field-book of conquerors. 

The pails separated by the semicolon in No. 1 and 2, make imperfect sense ; and hence 
they should be separated by the comma. No. 2. however, may be punctuated as it is by 
the first law of Deviation. (See laws of Deviation a few pages forward.) 

The parts in No. 3 make perfect sense, but the connective is suppressed. Accordingly, they 
cannot be separated by the semicolon under the rule. 

The parts in No. 4 and 5, also make perfect sense, but in both the connective is suppressed, 
as in the preceding No. 3 : consequently, the semicolon is incorrect punctuation. In No. 5, 
the punctuation is inconsistent ; for while it has a semicolon before teaching, it has only a 
comma before baptizing ; and yet the circumstances are precisely the same. 

Why neither the comma nor semicolon is admissible before the participles in this position, 
will be fully explained under the next pause. 

In No. G, the connective is not expressed. The semicolon is therefore improperly used. 

III. THE COLON. 

The colon properly separates the parts of a sentence, making 
perfect sense ; or distinct though related propositions, connected 
by conjunctions, adverbs, or relative pronouns understood. [See 
Semicolon, Notes.) 

In the suppression of the connectives or copulatives, lies the only 
rational and even imaginable distinction between the colon and 
semicolon. By this suppression alone, is the connection between 
the parts of a sentence in which either of them may be employed, 



PUNCTUATION. 39 

made less close, and a longer pause than the semicolon, necessary ; 
and then a longer pause is necessary : a fact which printers of the 
present day, who almost universally dispense with the use of the 
colon, seem to have forgotten, or studiously to neglect. 

The sentence in which the colon is properly employed, does not 
differ in construction from that in which the semicolon is inserted. 
(See Semicolon.) 

This pause is relatively as long again as the semicolon : under 
the influence of passion its time is indefinite.* 

1. Examples of the proper use of the Colon. 

1. He shows you what you ought to do, but excites not the de- 
sire of doing it : he treats man as if he were a being of pure intel- 
lect, without imagination or passions. 

2. For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven : 
I will exalt my throne above the stars of God : I will sit also upon 
the mount of the congregation in the sides of the north. 

3. Gratitude is of a fruitful and diffusive nature : of a free and 
communicative disposition : of an open and sociable temper. It 
will be imparting, discovering, and propagating itself: it affects 
light, company and liberty : it cannot endure to be smothered in 
privacy and obscurity. (See Deviations II.) 

4. The faults opposed to the sublime are chiefly two : the frigid 
and the bombast. 

5. One of the court party interrupted him in these words : 
" How dare you praise a rebel before the representatives of the 
nation ?" 

6. The following observations exactly correspond with the senti- 



* The learned reader may be gratified by a comparison of what I have advanced on the 
comma, as a pause of imperfect sense, and on the semicolon and colon, as pauses of perfect 
sense, with the remarks of Quinctilian on the same subject. He is speaking of the pronun- 
ciation or delivery of the following passage from Virgil, with respect to its pronunciation : — 
" Arma, virumque, cano, Trqjae qui primus ab oris 

Italiam, fato profugus Lavinaque venit 

Littora : multiim ille et terris jactatus et alto, 

Vi Superum, saevae memorem Junoris ob iram: 

Multa quoque et bello passus, dum conderet urbem, 

Inferretque Deos Latio ; genus unde Latinum, 

Albinique patres, atque altae mcenia Romae." 
Secundum est, (says Quinctilian,) ut sit oratio distincta ; id est, ut qui dicit, et incipiat ubi 
oportet, et desinat. Observandum etiam quo loco sustinendus et quasi suspendendus sermo 
sit (quam Graeci biroSiacrToXfiv, vel viroavoroXiiv, vel viroanyuriv vocant,) quo deponendus. 
Suspenditur, Anno, virumque cano, quia illud virum ad sequentia pertinet; ut sit, virwm, 
TrqjcB qui primus ab oris ; et hie iterum ; nam etiam si aliud est unde venit, quam quo venit, 
non distinguendum tamen, quia utrunque eodem verbo continetur, venit. Tertio Italiam, 
quia interjectio est, fato profugus, et continuum sermonem qui faciebat, Italiam, Lavinaque, 
dividit. Ob eandemque causam, quarto profugus, delude, Lavinaque venit Littora ; ubi jam 
erit distinctio, quia inde alius iNciPix sensus. Sed in ipsis etiam distinctionibus tempus 
alias brevius, alias longius dabimu3. Interest enim, sermonem finiat, an sensum. Itaque 
illam distinctionem Littora, protinus altero spiritus initio insequar. Cum illuc venero, Atque 
alt® mania RomcE, deponam et morabor, el novum rursus exordium faciam. Book xi. ch. 3. 



40 PUNCTUATION. 

merits of our author: "Nothing can contribute more towards 
bringing the powers of genius to their ultimate perfection than a 
severe judgment, equal in degree to the genius possessed." 

1. And with this, I finish the discussion of the structure of sen- 
tences : having fully considered them under all the heads I men- 
tioned, of perspicuity, unity, strength and musical arrangement. 

8. Is he the God of the Jews only ? Is he not also of the Gen- 
tiles ? Yes, of the Gentiles also : seeing it is one God who shall 
justify the circumcision by faith, and the uncircumcision through 
faith. 

9. Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also 
live with him: knowing that Christ being raised from the dead, 
dieth no more : death hath no more dominion over him. 

The parts of No. 1, 2 and 3, are property separated by the colon, because the connective 
and is understood. 

In No. 4, 5 and 6, namely is understood. The colon is therefore correctly used. 

In No. 7, 8 and 9, we have at length the proper punctuation before the participles, when 
employed as in these sentences. I now call the student's attention to the reason for this. The 
participles when so used, (and the perfect as well as the present is so used, though I have 
given no examples,) are uniformly abbreviated forms substituted for the finite verb preceded 
by conjunctions, adverbs, or relative pronouns. Thus, having in No 7, is strictly the equiva- 
lent of / have ; seeing, in No. 8, of we see ; and knowing, in No. 9, of we know ; and as these 
fuller expressions would, if employed, be preceded by the semicolon or colon, according as 
the connective for might be expressed or understood, no reason can be assigned why their 
equivalents should not be treated in the same manner ; that is, (since the connective, not 
merely, but also the pronoun, is understood,) with the colon. 

Against the use of the comma, which, as we have seen, is employed before the participle 
so situated, and I may now add, very frequently employed, there is a stronger objection than 
against that of the semicolon; for the participle is often employed in nearly the same manner 
after imperfect sense. Observe above the first sentence under the head of colon. "The colon 
properly separates the parts of a sentence, making perfect sense." The participle making here 
is the substitute or equivalent of " which make" preceded by imperfect sense. Take another 
example. " And there was seen a great way off a herd of swine, feeding." Here the parti- 
ciple is a mere abbreviation of " which icere feeding" as before preceded by imperfect sense ; 
and consequently it shotdd be separated from what precedes by the comma. How shah we 
distinguish cases of this kind from such as we lind in Nos. 7, 8, 9, if we point them in the 
same manner? 

It should be observed before dismissing this subject, that the participle often appears in what 
seems to be the one or the other of the two positions which I have just noticed, but which is 
yet very distinct from both: e. g. "I saw him sliding down hill." "He went crying all the 
way home." "The horse stood champing the bit." Here the participle limits, restrains or 
qualifies the object or action, and therefore cannot be separated from it even by the comma, 
unless some specification of time or place, &x., should intervene ; as, " I saw him, just at 
night, sliding down hill." " The horse stood, in the yard, champing, &c." 

2. Examples of improper use. 

1. They entered in, and dwelt together: and the second pos- 
session was worse than the first. 

2. One may have a considerable degree of taste in poetry, elo- 
quence, or any of the fine arts, who has little or hardly any genius 
for composition or execution in any of these arts : but genius can- 
not be found without including taste also. 

3. But on other occasions, this were improper : for what is the 
use of melody, or for what end has the poet composed in verse, if 
in reading his lines, we suppress his numbers, and degrade them, 
by our pronunciation, into mere prose ? 



PUNCTUATION. 41 

4. These are degrading : whereas, similes are commonly intend- 
ed to embellish and to dignify. 

5. He first lost by his misconduct the flourishing provinces of 
France, the ancient patrimony of the family : he subjected his 
kingdom to a shameful vassalage under the see of Rome : he saw 
the prerogatives of his crown diminished by law, and still more 
reduced by faction : and he died at last, when in danger of being 
totally expelled by a foreign power, and of either ending his life 
miserably in prison, or seeking shelter as a fugitive from the pur- 
suit of his enemies. 

6. When I applied my heart to know wisdom, and to see the 
business that is done upon the earth : then I beheld all the works 
of God, that a man cannot find out the work that is done under 
the sun. 

1. As we perceive the shadow to have moved along the dial, but 
did not perceive it moving ; and it appears the grass has grown, 
though nobody ever saw it grow : so the advances we make in 
knowledge, as they make such minute steps, are only perceivable 
by the distance. 

In the first five of these examples, the colon is improperly employed, because the connec- 
tives are expressed : in the last two, because it separates parts making imperfect sense. 

It may be worth while to notice the improper use of the comma between the sub-parts of 
the first part of No. 5. At France, we have perfect sense : consequently the comma should be 
displaced by the colon : which were, the connective and the verb, being suppressed. 



IV. THE PERIOD. 

The period is properly placed at the end of a complete and in- 
dependent enunciation of thought. Its relative length is double 
that of the colon ; but under the influence of passion, its length is 
indeterminate. 

As this pause is too well known to need illustration, I shall con- 
fine my examples to the purpose of showing its improper use. 

Examples of improper use. 

1. Jurists may be permitted with comparative safety to pile tome 
upon tome of interminable disquisition upon the motives, reasons 
and causes of just and unjust war. Metaphysicians may be suf- 
fered with impunity to spin the thread of their speculations until 
it is attenuated to a cobweb ; but for a body created for the gov- 
ernment of a great nation, and for the adjustment and protection 
of its diversified interests, it is worse than folly to speculate upon 
the causes of war, until the great question shall be presented for 
immediate action. 

2. The most eminent physicians bear uniform testimony to this 
propitious effect of entire abstinence. And the spirit of inspiration 

4* 



42 PUNCTUATION. 

has recorded, " He that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all 
things." 

3. The immortal Edwards, too, repeatedly records his own ex- 
perience of the happy effect of strict temperance both on the mind 
and body. And the recent reformations from moderate drinking, in 
different parts of the land, have revealed numerous examples of 
renovated health and spirits in consequence of the change. 

4. In the full persuasion of the excellency of our government, 
let us shun those vices which tend to its subversion, and cultivate 
those virtues which will render it permanent, and transmit it in full 
vigor to all succeeding ages. Let not the haggard forms of intem- 
perance and luxury ever lift their destroying visages in this happy 
country. Let economy, frugality, moderation and justice, at home 
and abroad, mark the conduct of all our citizens. Let it be our 
constant care to diffuse knowledge and goodness through all ranks 
of society. 

In No. 1, it will be readily observed, that the part beginning with jurists and the part be- 
ginning with metaphysicians, bear precisely the same relation to the succeeding conjunction 
but : a sufficient reason surely against the insertion of the period after war. 

In Nos. 2, 3, for the reason that the parts are allied in thought, and connected as proposi- 
tions by the connective and, the semicolon should have been used. 

In No. 4, we have the same connection with the connective understood. The period there- 
fore should give place to the colon. 

V. THE DOUBLE PERIOD. 

The double period is the pause which occurs at the end of a 
paragraph, or a series of sentences unfolding the same general 
thought. It has no sign of its own, but is represented by the 
common period. It is usually indicated by a break or blank 
space in the page. This, however, is not always the case ; for 
neither speakers, writers, nor printers, are always accurate in mark- 
ing the transition from one general thought to another ; and when 
not, the reader must exercise his own judgment in marking it for 
himself. 

The length of the double period, as the name implies, is relatively 
about double the length of the common period. 

No examples are necessary to illustrate this pause ; a bare reference to any book within 
reach, will be sufficient to satisfy the inquiring that this pause has a real existence in nature ; 
and though hitherto unnoticed by writers on elocution, one of great importance to a correct, 
graceful, and impressive delivery. By neglecting to observe it, many speakers and readers, 
both at the bin- and in the pidpit, as well as in less conspicuous positions, impair seriously the 
effect of what they speak and read on those who hear them. Many cases of this have fallen 
imder my own observation. 

DEVIATIONS FROM THE LEGITIMATE USE OF THE PAUSES WHICH MARK 
DIVISIONS OF SENSE. 

I have said at the beginning of this chapter, " that every de- 
parture from the proper punctuation, by which the latter is brought 
in conflict with the delivery, should be systematic ; that is to say, 



PUNCTUATION. 43 

should be for reasons which apply to all cases of the same kind ; 
so that the design of the change in punctuation may be always 
obvious, and the proper delivery retained notwithstanding." 

Unhappily, for the want of a sufficient number of pauses to meet 
all the exigencies of punctuation, such a departure is frequently 
necessary ; and I now proceed to state the rules in conformity to 
which, it should uniformly take place. As I have hitherto intro- 
duced no rule, not founded in the nature of things, and sustained 
by abundant examples from the best practice of printers, (the lead- 
ing practice, in fact, of all printers, but from which they are often 
seen capriciously wandering,) so here I shall lay down no principle 
which is not amply justified by the best punctuation in this country 
and Great Britain. I do not aim at originality, but simply to in- 
troduce system, where hitherto, it must be confessed, practice has 
often been incompatible with itself, often arbitrary, not seldom ex- 
tremely slovenly, frequently and glaringly false, and, since confusion 
here must necessarily produce a corresponding confusion in the de- 
livery, always more or less injurious. 

I. When the parts (of a sentence) making imperfect sense, are 
not merely long, but comprise subdivisions which require separation 
by the comma, we may employ the semicolon to mark their limits, 
and distinguish them from these subdivisions ;* and if, for the 
same reason, a remoter punctuation be necessary, we may employ 
the colon. 

Examples. 

1. The bounding of Satan over the walls of Paradise ; his sit- 
ting in the shape of a cormorant upon the tree of life, which stood 
in the centre of it, and overtopped all the other trees in the garden ; 
his alighting among the herd of animals, which are so beautifully 
represented as playing about Adam and Eve, together with his 
transforming himself into different shapes, in order to hear their 
conversation ; are circumstances that give an agreeable surprise to 
the reader, and are devised with great art to connect that series of 
adventures, in which the poet has engaged this artifice of fraud. 

2. That a man, to whom he was, in a great measure, beholden 
for his crown, and even for his life ; a man, to whom, by every 
honor and favor, he had endeavored to express his gratitude ; 
whose brother, the Earl of Derby, was his own father-in-law ; to 
whom he had committed the trust of his person, by creating him 
lord chamberlain ; that a man enjoying his full confidence and affec- 
tion ; not actuated by any motive of discontent or apprehension ; 

* When a sentence contains a succession of similar members making imperfect sense, and 
any one of them requires the semicolon for the reason assigned ; all of them, for the sake of 
uniformity, may be punctuated in the same maimer, though without subdivisions requiring 
the comma. The first and second examples are pertinent illustrations of this. 



44 PUNCTUATION. 

that this man should engage in a conspiracy against him, he deemed 
absolutely false and incredible. 

3. Seeing then that the soul has many different faculties, or in 
other words, many different ways of acting ; that it can be intensely 
pleased or made happy by all these different faculties or ways of 
acting ; that it may be endowed with several latent faculties, which 
it is not at present in a condition to exert ; that we cannot believe 
the soul is endowed with any faculty which is of no use to it ; that 
whenever any one of these faculties is transcendently pleased, the 
soul is in a state of happiness ; and, in the last place, considering 
that the happiness of another world is to be the happiness of the 
whole man ; who can question but that there is an infinite variety 
in those pleasures we are speaking of; and that this fulness of joy 
will be made up of all those pleasures which the nature of the soul 
is capable of receiving ? 

4. Besides the ignorance of masters who teach the first rudi- 
ments of reading, and the Avant of skill or negligence in that arti- 
cle, of those who teach the learned languages ; besides the 
erroneous manner, which the untutored pupils fall into, through 
the want of early attention in masters, to correct small faults in the 
beginning, which increase and gain strength with years ; besides 
bad habits contracted from imitation of particular persons, or the 
contagion of example, from a general prevalence of a certain tone 
or cant in reading or reciting, peculiar to each school, and regularly 
transmitted from one generation of boys to another ; besides all 
these, which are fruitful sources of vicious elocution, there is one 
fundamental error in the method universally used in teaching to 
read, which at first gives a wrong bias, and leads us ever after 
blindfold from the right path, under the guidance of a false rule. 

5. As the middle, and the fairest, and the most conspicuous 
places in cities, are usually chosen for the erection of statues and 
monuments, dedicated to the memory of the most worthy men 
who have nobly deserved of their country ; so should we in the 
heart and centre of our soul, in the best and highest apartment 
thereof, in the places most exposed to ordinary observation, and 
most secure from worldly care, erect lively representations, and 
lasting memorials of divine bounty. 

6. When the gay and smiling aspect of things has begun to 
leave the passage to a man's heart thus thoughtlessly unguarded ; 
when kind and caressing looks of every object without, that can 
flatter his senses, have conspired with the enemy within, to betray 
him, and put him off his defence ; when music likewise hath lent 
her aid, and tried her power upon the passions ; when the voice of 
singing men, and the voice of singing women, with the sound of 
the viol and the lute, have broke in upon his soul, and in some 



PUNCTUATION. 45 

tender notes have touched the secret springs of rapture ; that mo- 
ment let us dissect and look into his heart : see how vain, how weak, 
how empty a thing it is ! 

1. If, indeed, we desire to behold a literature like that which 
has sculptured with such energy of expression, which has painted 
so faithfully and vividly the crimes, the vices, the follies of ancient 
and modern Europe ; if we desire that our land should furnish for 
the orator and the novelist, for the painter and the poet, age after 
age, the wild and romantic scenery of war ; the glittering march 
of armies, and the revelry of the camp ; the shrieks and blasphe- 
mies, and all the horrors of the battle field ; the desolation of the 
harvest, and the burning cottage ; the storm, the sack and the ruin 
of cities : if we desire to unchain the furious passions of jealousy 
and selfishness, hatred and revenge, those lions that now sleep 
harmless in their den ; if we desire that the lake, the river, the 
ocean, should blush with the blood of brothers ; that the winds 
should waft from the land to the sea, from the sea to the land, the 
roar and smoke of battle ; that the very mountain-tops should be- 
come altars for the sacrifice of brothers : if we desire that these, 
and such things as these, (the elements, to an incredible extent, of 
the literature of the old world,) should be the elements of our 
literature ; then, but then only, let us hurl from its pedestal, the ma- 
jestic statue of our union, and scatter the fragments over all our land. 

II. When the parts (of a sentence) making perfect sense, com- 
prise sub-parts also making perfect sense, and both have the con- 
nectives expressed or understood at the same time, and hence both 
according to rule require the same punctuation ; to mark these 
respective limits and distinguish them from one another, we may 
punctuate the sub-parts one degree lower than the principal parts ; 
that is to say, if the principal parts require the colon, the sub- 
parts may be separated by the semicolon : if the principal parts re- 
quire the semicolon, the sub-parts may be separated by the comma. 

Examples. 

1. They now heard of the exact accomplishment of obscure 
predictions : of the punishment over which the justice of heaven 
had seemed to slumber : of dreams ; omens ; warnings from the 
dead : of princesses, for whom noble suitors contended in every 
generous exercise of strength and skill : of infants, strangely pre- 
served from the dagger of the assassin, to fulfil high destinies. 

2. Gratitude is of a fruitful and diffusive nature ; of a free and 
communicative disposition ; of an open and sociable temper : it will 
be imparting, discovering and propagating itself: it affects light, 
company and liberty : it cannot endure to be smothered in privacy 
and obscurity. 



46 PUNCTUATION. 

3. We swear to preserve the blessings which they toiled to gain; 
which they obtained by the incessant labors of eight distressful 
years : to transmit to our posterity our right undiminished, our 
honor untarnished, and our freedom unimpared. 

4. This was the gymnastic school, in which Washington was 
brought up ; in which his quick glance was formed, destined to 
range hereafter across the battle-field, through clouds of smoke 
and bristling rows of bayonets : the school in which his senses, 
weaned from the tastes for those detestable indulgences miscalled 
pleasure, in which the flower of adolescence so often languishes 
and pines away, were early braced up to that sinewy manhood 
which became the 

Lord of the Lion heart and eagle eye. 

5. In the Book of Judges, we see the strength and weakness of 
Samson : in that of Ruth, the plain-dealing and equity of Boaz : 
in those of Kings, the holiness of Samuel, of Elijah, and the other 
prophets ; the reprobation of Saul ; the fall and repentance of 
David, his mildness and patience ; the wisdom of Solomon ; the 
piety of Hezekiah and Josiah : in Esdras, the zeal for the law of 
God : in Tobit, the conduct of a holy family : in Judith, the power 
of grace : in Esther, prudence : in Job, a pattern of admirable 
patience. 

In all of these sentences, the sub-parts are constructed precisely like the principal parts : and 
if they were pointed in the same manner, as in strict propriety they should be, they would be 
confounded. The sub-parts are therefore separated by the semicolon, to mark their subor- 
dination. In No. 4, the sub-part, ending with bayonets, and in No. 5, the sub-part respecting 
David, have themselves sub-parts of the same construction. These, consequently, are separa- 
ted by the comma, 

SEC. II. PAUSES DENOTING THE NATURE OF THE SENTENCE. 

1. The interrogation, ) , j ,-, ( ? 
n m i *: r marked thus: < , 

2. The exclamation, j ( ! 

These, accurately speaking, are not pauses, but the representa- 
tives of the pauses, already considered, which mark divisions of 
sense ; and this representative character it is very important to re- 
member ; for otherwise we shall be constantly in danger of regard- 
ing, and in delivery treating, as distinct sentences, what are in fact 
but parts of the same sentence. 

Being representatives, they have, of course, no time of their own, 
but adopt that of the pauses of sense for which they stand ; and 
they stand indifferently for the comma, semicolon, colon or period. 

I ought, perhaps, to enumerate the parenthesis among pauses that indicate the nature of 
the sentence, and have a representative character; but as modern practice usually asso- 
ciates the pause with it, as it indicates no peculiarity in the sentence itself, which it includes, 
but simply that, whatever the nature of the sentence may be, it is necessaiy neither to the 
geneial construction nor sense, and especially as it would lead to a repetition of the same mat- 
ter in a subsequent part of this work, where the parenthesis is fully discussed, I deem it best 
to waive every thing in this place beyond this brief allusion. 



PUNCTUATION. 47 

I. The interrogation declares the sentence before it, a question. 

1. Examples of proper use. 

1. How shall a man obtain the kingdom of God ? By impiety? 
theft? murder? adultery? 

2. Will the Lord cast off forever ? and will he be favorable no 
more? 

3. Doth his promise fail forevermore ? hath God forgotten to be 
gracious ? hath he in anger shut up his tender mercies ? 

4. Canst thou draw out the leviathan with a hook ? or his tongue 
with a cord which thou lettest down ? 

5. During a life so transitory, what lasting monument then can 
our fondest hopes erect ? My brethren ! we stand on the borders 
of an awful gulf, which is swallowing up all things human. 

In No. 1, after " impiety," &c, the interrogation represents the comma : in the middle of 
Nos. 2, 4, the semicolon : in the middle of No. 3, the colon : in No. 1, after " God," and at the 
end of Nos. 1, 2, 3, 4, and the first part of No. 5, the period. 

2. Examples of improper use. 

Two cases of this occur : 

(1.) Where a question is not asked, but merely said or command- 
ed to be asked : e. g. 

1. And they asked him when he intended to enter upon the 
enterprise of which he spoke ? 

2. If the question be put, to what class of those pleasures of 
taste, which I have enumerated, that pleasure is to be referred, 
which we receive from poetry, eloquence or fine writing? my 
answer is, not to any one, but to them all. 

3. Presumptuous man ! the reason would'st thou find, 
Why formed so weak, so little, or so blind ? 
First, if thou canst, the harder reason guess, 
Why formed no weaker, blinder, and no less. 
Ask of thy mother, earth, why oaks are made 
Taller or stronger than the weeds they shade ? 
Or ask of yonder argent fields above, 
Why Jove's satellites are less than Jove ? 

The only question, properly so called, in these three examples, is contained in the first 
couplet of the third. The interrogation at the end of the first, should give place to the period : 
in the second, to the comma: in the third, at the end of the third couplet, to the semicolon ; 
and at the end of the fourth, to the period. 

(2.) Where a sentence is punctuated as a question, when in fact 
it is an exclamation : no answer being required, expected or even 
thought of : e. g. 

1. The ear^h must be labored before it will give its increase ; 



48 PUNCTUATION. 

and when it is forced into its several products, how many hands 
must they pass through before they are fit for use ? 

2. How great must be the majesty of that place, where the 
whole art of creation has been employed;' and where God has 
chosen to show himself in the most magnificent manner ? 

3. And when no longer himself, how affecting was it to behold 
the disordered efforts of his wandering mind employed on subjects 
of literature ? 

II. The exclamation denotes that a sentence, or part of a sen- 
tence, before it, contains an expression of some one of the various 
emotions or passions. 

Exanvples of proper use. 

1. Death ! great proprietor of all ! 'tis thine 
To tread out empires and to quench the stars. 

2. Why is it that to man have been given passions which he can- 
not tame ; and which sink him below the brute ! and why is it that 
a few ambitious men are permitted by the great Ruler, in the self- 
ish pursuit of their own aggrandizement, to scatter in ruin, desola- 
tion and death, whole kingdoms: making miserv and destruction 
the steps by which they mount up to their seats of pride ! 

3. The treasures of America are now in heaven. How long the 
list of our good and wise and true, assembled there ! how few re- 
main with us ! 

4. But " they complained of injustice." God of heaven! had 
they not a right to complain ! After a solemn treaty, plundered of 
all their property, and on the eve of the last extremity of wretch- 
edness, were they to be deprived of the last resource of impotent 
wretchedness, complaint and lamentation ! 

5. Oh ! does not the God who is said to be love, shed over this 
attribute of his, its finest illustration ! when, while he sits in the 
highest heaven, and pours out his fulness on the whole subordinate 
domain of nature and providence, he bestows a pitying regard on 
the very humblest of his children, and sends his reviving Spirit into 
every heart, and cheers by his presence every home, and provides 
for the wants of every family, and watches every sick-bed, and 
listens to the complaints of every sufferer ; and while, by his won- 
drous mind, the weight of universal government is borne, oh ! is it 
not more wondrous and more excellent still, that he feels for every 
sorrow, and has an ear open to every prayer ! 

In the first example, and the first instance of the fourth, and the first, second and third in- 
stances of the fifth example, the exclamation point represents the comma : in the second, the 
semicolon and period: in the third, the colon and period: hi the second and third instances 
of the fourth and the last of the fifth, the period. 

As the exclamation is comparatively seldom misapplied, I think it unnecessary to trouble 
the student with examples of improper use. 



PUNCTUATION. 49 



SEC. III. THE PAUSE DENOTING UNUSUAL CONSTRUCTION OR 
SIGNIFICANCE. 

This pause is commonly called the dash : occasionally, the em- 
phatic pause : in this work, the rhetorical pause. It is represented 
thus : — 

Haste, indolence, or, perhaps, ignorance of the laws of punctuation, has effected a total per- 
version of the appropriate use of this pause. We frequently had it substituted, not merely in 
the journals of the day, but in productions of a permanent and standard character, for the 
comma, semicolon and colon. The impropriety of this is too obvious to be insisted on ; and, 
I regret to add. too much a matter of custom, perhaps, to be corrected. Yet there can be 
little doubt that this indiscriminate use of the dash is at once useless and mischievous: use- 
less, because the pauses of sense are equally significant ; and mischievous, because it con- 
founds pauses in then nature distinct, often obscures the sense, and always in the eyes of a man 
of taste, mars the beauty of the printed page. 

The rhetorical pause is properly employed in the following cases : 

I. Before a slight change in the construction of the sentence : e. g. 
The clear conception, outrunning the deductions of logic ; the 

high purpose ; the firm resolve ; the dauntless spirit, speaking on 
the tongue, beaming from the eye, informing every feature, and 
urging the whole man onward, right onward to his object ; — this, 
this is eloquence. 

II. After a portion of a sentence abruptly broken off : e. g. 
1. If thou beest he — but how fallen ! how changed ! 

2. Here lies the great — false marble, where ? 
Nothing but sordid dust lies here. 

3. Frankness, suavity, tenderness, benevolence, breathed through: 
their exercise. And his family ! — But he is gone : that noble heart 
beats no more. 

4. Leonidas ! Cato ! Phocion ! Tell — one peculiarity marks them 
all : they dared and suffered for their native land. 

III. After a sentence which abruptly terminates a thought : the 
next sentence beginning another : hence between the remarks of 
different speakers in informal dialogue : e. g. 

1. Oh, how I trembled with disgust! — And now blue dismal 
ilames gleamed along the walls : the tombs were rent asunder : 
bands of fierce spectres rushed around me in frantic dance : furi- 
ously they gnashed their teeth, while they gazed upon me, and 
shrieked in loud yells, " Welcome, thou fratricide ! Welcome, thou 
lost forever !" — Horror burst the bands of sleep; but my feelings 
— words are too weak, too powerless, to express them. — Surely 
this was no idle dream ! — 'Twas a celestial warning. 

2. "Have you read my Key to the Romans ?" said Dr. Taylor, 
of Norwich, to Mr. Newton. — " I have turned it over." — " You have 



50 PUNCTUATION. 

turned it over ? And is this the treatment a book must meet with, 
which has cost me many years of hard study ? Must I be told, 
at last, that you have ' turned it over,' and thrown it aside ? 
You ought to have read it carefully and weighed deliberately 
what comes forward on so serious a subject." — " Hold ! you have 
cut me out full employment, if my life were to be as long as Me- 
thuselah's." 

The rhetorical pause after " feelings," in No. 1, belongs to case second above. In the pres- 
ent case and case I„ the rhetorical pause is usually associated with the pause of sense : in this 
respect differing from case second and the two which follow. 

IV. After a part of a sentence, followed by an imexpected turn 
of sentiment : e. g. 

1. This world, 'tis true 

Was made for Caesar — but for Titus too. 

2. I now solemnly declare that so far as personal happiness is 
concerned, I would infinitely prefer to pass my life as a member of 
the bar, in the practice of my profession, according to the ability 
which God has given me, to that life which I have led, and in 
which I have held places of high trust, honor, responsibility, and 
— obloquy. 

3. The people lifted up their voices and blessed the good St. 
Nicholas ; and from that time forth, the sage Van Kortland was 
held in more honor than ever for his great talent at dreaming, and 
was pronounced a most useful citizen and a right good man — when 
he was asleep. 

V. Before and sometimes after a word, clause or sentence of 
more than usual significance : e. g. 

1. And now abideth faith, hope, charity: these three ; but the 
greatest of these is — charity. 

2. Socrates died like a philosopher, but Jesus Christ like a — God. 

3. Jesus wept — 

4. And Nathan said unto David — thou art the man. 

5. Is life so dear, or peace so sweet as to be purchased at the 
price of chains and slavery ? — Forbid it, Almighty God ! I know 
not what course others may take, but as for me, give me liberty or 
give me — death ! 

Examples of the improper use of the Rhetorical Pause. 

1. Thus, without any innovation — without altering or abolishing 
any thing but pernicious novelties, introduced for the encourage- 
ment of sloth and idleness — by converting, for the future, the same 
funds for the use of the serviceable, which are spent, at present, 
upon the unprofitable, you may be well served. 



PUNCTUATION. 51 

2. To acquire a thorough knowledge of our hearts and charac- 
ters, — to restrain every irregular inclination, — to subdue every 
rebellious passion, — to purify our motives and our conduct, — to 
form ourselves to that temperance which no pleasure can seduce, 
— to that meekness which no provocation can ruffle, — to that pa- 
tience which no affliction can overwhelm, and that integrity which 
no interest can shake ; this is the task which is assigned to us, — 
a task which cannot be performed without the utmost diligence 
and care. 

3. The church has commenced her march — Samaria has with 
one accord, believed the gospel — Antioch has become obedient to 
the faith — the name of Christ has been proclaimed throughout 
Asia Minor — the temples of the gods, as though smitten by an in- 
visible hand, are deserted — the citizens of Ephesus cry out in 
despair, " great is Diana of the Ephesians" — licentious Corinth is 
purified by the preaching of Christ crucified. 

4. He who cannot persuade himself to withdraw from society, 
must be content to pay a tribute to a multitude of tyrants : to the 
loiterer who makes appointments he never keeps — to the consulter 
who asks advice he never takes — to the boaster who blusters only 
to be praised — to the complainer who whines only to be pitied — 
to the projector whose, happiness is only to entertain his friends 
with expectations, which all but himself know to be vain — to the 
economist who tells of bargains and settlements — to the politician 
who predicts the fate of battle and breach of alliances — to the 
usurer who compares the different funds — and to the talker who 
talks only because he loves talking. 

In example first, the dash usurps the place of the comma : in the second, of the comma in 
the first three instances, of the semicolon in the next two, (see Deviations from the legitimate 
use of pauses between divisions of sense No 1.,) and of the colon in the last instance. The 
association of the comma with the dash in this case, augments the impropriety of the punc- 
tuation. In example 3d and 4th, the colon and semicolon are the pauses which should be 
inserted instead of the dash. 



52 MODULATION. 



CHAPTER III. 



MODULATION. 

Modulation includes the consideration of key, evolutions or va- 
riations, force and rate. 

I. THE KEY. 

The key, otherwise called pitch, is the predominating tone of 
reading or speaking. 

Different voices, in consequence of organic diversity, occupy dif- 
ferent portions of the scale of vocal sounds. Some are treble, 
some are tenor, and some are bass ; while others can scarcely be 
called either treble, tenor or bass ; but occupy intermediate places 
in the scale. Still, whatever these organic differences may be, 
every human voice has its relatively high, medium and low tones, 
any of which may be adopted, though not with equal propriety, as 
the prevailing tone of delivery.* It is easy to show from a variety 
of considerations that the medium tone, which is that of sustained 
and animated conversation, is the only one that can be made the 
key of reading or speaking, with any regard for the exactions and 
exigencies of protracted discourse. 

1. The organs of speech, being unaccustomed to any thing more than slight and infrequent 
exertions at a high pitch, soon tire ; and in consequence, the voice becomes harsh, or breaks, 
under the unnatural strain which it is forced to endure. 

2. In like manner, they are unaccustomed to a low pitch : the other extreme ; and for the 
same reason, the voice will soon become thick and unintelligible.t 

3. No sentence can be stud to be properly delivered which has not its close indicated by 
the voice as well as by the period. This is generally done by dropping the voice to a point 
somewhat below the key. Of course, such a close is impossible with the voice already de- 
pressed to its lowest note ; and with it elevated at a high pitch, the fall must be unnaturally 
deep, and therefore exaggerated and absurd. 

Not unfrequently the sentence should terminate, after traversing nearly the whole compass 
of the voice, with its highest notes ; at others, after the same movement in a different direc- 
tion, with its lowest. For example : " Will you ride to tow 7 n to-day ?"' requires a beginning 
below the key, and an ascent extended indefinitely above it. On the other hand, the ques- 
tion, " When will you ride to town and buy those goods of which you speak '?" demands a 
beginning above the key, and a descent indefinitely extended below it. Now it is obvious 
that if the key be not a medium tone, such exigencies of discourse cannot be met with safety 
and success. 

* Accurately speaking there are as many keys as there are half-tones and even quarter- 
tones of the voice ; any one of which may be made, at pleasure, the predominating tone of 
reading or speaking. 

t Nam vox, ut nervi, quo remissior, hoc et grayior et plenior : quo tensior, hoc tenuis et 
acuta magis est. Sic ima vim non habet : summa rumpi periclitatur. Mediusigitur utendum 
sonis; hique, cum augenda intentio est, excitanda : cum surnmittenda, sunt temperandi. — 
Quinc. b. xi. ch. hi. 



MODULATION. 53 

4. It may be observed, farther, that the almost inevitable consequence of adopting the high 
or low extreme, is monotony ; or that sing-song maimer which is to the orator, what the 
shoal and the rock are to the ship : fatal. Experience proves that while at a high pitch, the 
voice cannot rise higher, it will not descend lower, but must run in a uniform stream or not 
run at all: if pitched low, the case is different, but the result the same. 

On the whole, about nothing should the student who desires to become a correct and taste- 
ful reader or speaker, evince more solicitude, than to form his delivery on the right key. He 
should spare no pains to acquire, (if he has it not,) the habit of reading and speaking as he 
converses : with the same tone predominating, and with the same easy and natural variations 
of voice.* Of these I shall now speak. 

DIRECTIONS EOR EXERCISE ON KEY. 

Select a sentence, (a short one at first,) and deliver it on as low 
a key, as may be consistent with distinctness • of articulation, and 
varying intonations ; then higher, and yet higher and higher, until 
the top of the voice shall have been reached ; when the process 
may be reversed : adopting successively a lower key, until the 
bottom of the voice shall have been reached. Repeat the exercise 
as often as possible. Its tendency is to increase the compass of 
the voice : to improve its quality, and bring it under perfect 
control. 

This exercise, as we learn from Cicero, (de Orat. b. i. c. 59,) was a favorite one with the 
Greeks ; and though he condemns, and perhaps, justly, their excessive practice in view of the 
time it consumed, it may be fairly inferred from this very practice that the evidences of its 
utility must have been decisive, or few would have endured the protracted severity of its dis- 
cipline. The following is the passage of Cicero to which I refer. 

Quid est oratori tarn necessarium, quam vox ? Tamen me auctore nemo dicendi studiosus, 
Grascorum more, et tragcedorum voci serviet, qui et annos complures sedentes declamitant, 
et quotidie, antequam pronuntient, vocem cubantes sensim excitant, eandemque, cum ege- 
runt, sedentes ab acutissimo sono usque ad gravissimum sonum recipiunt et quasi quodam- 
modo colligunt. Hoc nos si facere velimus, ante condemnentur ii, quorum causas receperi- 
mus, quam toties, quoties prasscribitur Paeanem aut Munionem citaremus. 

II. VOCAL EVOLUTIONS, OR VARIATIONS FROM THE KEY. 

By vocal evolutions, I mean the different movements of the voice 
in the delivery of a sentence. These are what I shall term the 
siveeps, the bend, the slides, and the closes. 

1. The sweeps are of two kinds: the accentual and the em- 
phatic ; both of which are farther divided into upper and lower. 

2. The bend is the rising inflection of other works on elocution. 

3. The slides are four : the upward, the downward, the waving 
and the double slide. ** 

4. The closes are two : the partial and perfect close. 

As these are not indicated by the pauses enumerated and de- 
scribed in the preceding chapter, and as a merely verbal description 
would be unintelligible, writers on elocution have resorted to a 
train of signs for the purpose of expressing them to the eye. In 

* Non solum ne dicamus omnia clamose, quod insanum est ; aut intra loquendi modum, 
quod motu caret ; aut summisso murmure, quo etiam debilitatur omnis intentio ; sed ut in iis- 
dem partibus, iisdemque affectibus sint tamen quaedam non ita magnae vocis declinationes, 
prout aut verborum dignitas, aut sententiarum natura, aut depositio, aut incoeptio, aut trans- 
itus postulabit.— Quinc. b. xi. ch. iii. 

5* 



54 MODULATION. 

the figures which follow, and the remarks subjoined to them, they 
are exhibited and fully explained. 

1. THE SWEEPS. 

Both Accentual and Emphatic sweeps are the effects of a greater 
force of voice applied to one syllable of a word in comparison with 
another, or to one word of a sentence in comparison with other 
words. To prepare for this application of greater force, the voice 
rises above the key to the syllable or word accented or emphasized ; 
and as the result of this application the voice is carried below the 
key, and again back to it. The first of these movements is called 
the upper sweep : the second, the lower. 

Accentual sweeps of course precede and follow the accents pri- 
mary and secondary. Their constant recurrence, in the delivery of 
successive words, at intervals varying with the number of unac- 
cented syllables between the accents, produces those slight undu- 
lations or waves of the voice which may be observed in the following 
fragment of a sentence, if read without emphasis: "Yet because 
of his importunity, he will rise and give him as many as he needeth." 
(See Plate, fig. 1.) 

Such being the effect of accent, the monotone of which some, if not all works of elocution, 
speak, has therefore no existence. Accordingly I dispense with it in this work ; and when I 
have occasion to speak of the delivery of a sentence with no other variations of the voice 
than those produced by accent, I say, " delivered with accentual sweeps." 

The emphatic sweeps, unlike the accentual, are not limited to a 
part of a word, or even to an entire word ; but sometimes extend 
over the half of a sentence. The superior sweep precedes, and the 
inferior follows, the primary accent of the word on which emphasis 
is placed. (See Plate, fig. 2, e. f.) 

Emphasis frequently falls on a word in such a position as ren- 
ders the prolongation of the upper and lower sweep, for the want 
of room, impossible. In this case, they are formed on the em- 
phatic word alone, though a word of one syllable ; and they are then 
called by Dr. Porter and other writers on elocution, the circum- 
flex. (See Plate, fig. 2, a.) As this term is a convenient one, I 
shall continue to use it : it being understood, however, that I mean 
by it nothing more than the greatest condensation of the emphatic 
sweeps. What I have to say additionally on these sweeps, I re- 
serve until I shall have reached the subject of emphasis. 

2. THE BEND. 

The bend is represented by the acute accent of the Greek, thus : / 
It indicates a slight turn of the voice upward at a pause of imper- 
fect sense. 

Examples. 

If there be any consolation in Christy any comfort of love 7 , 



MODULATION. 55 

any fellowship of the spirit/, any bowels and mercies 7 , fulfil ye 
my joy. 

The trials of wandering and exile 7 , of the ocean, the winter, 
the wilderness and the savage foe 7 , were the final assurances of 
success. 

3. THE SLIDES. 



1. The upward slide, 

2. The downward slide, 

3. The waving slide, 

4. The double slide, 



marked thus : 



1. The upward slide carries the voice upward through a succes- 
sion of tones, and suspends it at the highest. (See Plate, Jig. 3.) 

Examples. 
Did Paul make a worse preacher for being brought up at the 
feet of Gamaliel ? Does God uniformly work in one way ? Has 
he never employed talents usefully ? 

2. The downward slide reverses the upward : carrying the voice 
downward through a succession of tones, and suspending it at the 
lowest. (See Plate, Jig. 4.) 

Examples. 

Who possessed more advantages or more eloquence than the 
apostle whose words are alluded to in the objection ? 

To whom do we owe it, under an allwise Providence, that this 
nation so miraculously born, is now contributing with such effect 
to the welfare of the human family, by aiding the march of mental 
and moral improvement, and giving an example to the nations of 
the earth ? 

3. The waving slide does not differ essentially from a very full 
development of the two emphatic sweeps : the voice rising above 
the level of the sentence from the beginning, to descend upon the 
emphatic word, pass below the level of the sentence, and return to 
it or above it at the end. (See Plate, Jig. 2, e.f.) 

Examples. 
You will ride to town to-day f 
You will ride to town to-day f 
You will ride to town to-day f 
You will ride to town to-day f 

4. The double slide carries the voice upward, as in the first 
slide, and then downward, as in the second. The disjunctive con- 
junction or, which is always present in questions of this kind, forms 



56 MODULATION. 

the point at which the one ends, and the other begins. (See Plate, 
Jiff. 5, a, b, c.) 

Examples. 

Barabbas, or Jesus 9 

Is it lawful to give tribute unto Caesar, or not 9 
Shall we call him a patriot, or shall we stigmatize him as a 
traitor 9 

4. THE CLOSES. I 

I substitute this word for cadences, because the latter is not sufficiently general, and suggests 
that sentences terminate like a piece of music. This indeed was the theory of Walker, a 
theory in an unfortunate moment endorsed by Porter ; but it is a theory, notwithstanding, 
which has no foundation in facts : sentences terminate in a variety of ways ; and even the 
same sentence has not always the same close. 

1. The partial close, ) , , ,, ( (*) 
ft m, r r . i y marked thus : < } / 

2. The perfect close, j ( (.) 

1. The partial close* is a descent or fall of the voice at the end 
of one of the parts of a compound sentence to the key, or to a 
point near the key, preparatory to the perfect close. It is repre- 
sented by the grave accent of the Greeks. 

2. The perfect close is a descent or fall of the voice, at the end 
of a sentence, quite down to the key or to a point below it. It is 
represented by the period. 

Examples of both in connection. 

The faults opposed to the sublime are chiefly two* : the frigid 
and the bombast. 

Before closing this, I wish to make one observation* : I shall make 
it once for all. 

For instance : if I am speaking of virtue, in the course of ordi- 
nary conversation, I refer the word to no sex or gender ; I say, 
" Virtue is its own reward* ;" or, " It is the law of nature." 

Among similes, faulty through too great obviousness of the 
likeness, we must likewise rank those which are taken from ob- 
jects become trite and familiar in poetical language. Such is the 
simile of a hero to a lion* ; of a person in sorrow to a flower 
drooping its head* ; of a violent passion to a tempest 1 ; of chastity 
to snow* ; of virtue to the sun or stars* ; and many others of the 
same kind. 

The closes are incidents exclusively of declarative sentences ; {see Classification, Definition 
of a Decl. Sent. ;) and they have their characteristic delivery, only, at the end of such sen- 
tences or the parts of such sentences, when the last word is under emphasis ; which is coni- 

* This is the falling inflexion of other writers on elocution. It is treated by them as the 
reverse of the rising inflexion or bend. If this were just, the voice ought simply to turn 
down, as in the bend it turns up ; whereas it falls down, and is always preparatory to perfect 
close. 



MODULATION. 57 

monly the case. (See Emphasis, Sect. II. iv.) When the emphatic word is not the last, the 
characteristic delivery of the closes is modified. (See Emphasis, Sect. II. v. vi.) 

I have observed some faults in the delivery of the closes which the student should correct, 
if subject to them, or any one of them, at any cost of time and labor. 

1. The sentence is sometimes terminated with a continuation of voice On the usual level, 
instead of a fall. This is not often the case, yet it occurs. 

2. When the voice falls at the end, the fall is equivocal, not decisive : the voice turns down- 
ward, but as if with the design of rising again. 

3. Occasionally I have met with the habit of uniformly placing strong emphasis on the 
penultimate or antepenultimate word of a sentence, and then rushing from that point, as if 
down a declivity to the end of the sentence. 

4. I have frequently met with the habit of falling unnaturally deep : especially from a high, 
artificial key. 

The proper delivery may be acquired by answering yes and no, to definite interrogative 
sentences ; and then substitute the equivalent of the yes or no, and deliver the last word in 
precisely the same manner : being careful to deliver the whole sentence either on a level or 
rising to the last word. E. g. Will you ride to town to-day V Yes. Will you ride to town 
to-day ? I will ride to town to-day. 

III. FORCE. 

When a person, reading or speaking, is requested to read or speak 
louder, he can, without rising in tone, and simply by a slight additional 
exertion, so increase the volume of his voice, that any one within a rea- 
sonable distance, and not deaf, may hear distinctly and with ease. 

This increase of volume, without change of tone, is an increase 
of force ; which may be varied by those who have powerfufvocal 
organs, from a whisper to the awful reverberations of thunder. 

I need scarcely say that the judicious management of force, is 
a distinct and important addition to that variety which renders 
good reading and speaking so singularly attractive to all classes of 
hearers. 

Some passages, of course, should be delivered with a greater 
degree of force than others. When these occur, the student must 
be governed in their delivery by the relative importance of the 
thought, or the nature of the sentiment or passion expressed. I 
know of no other rule for the management of force in such cases. 

In a general view, however, when we have regard to the tenor 
of an entire discourse, we should never employ a greater degree of 
force than may be necessary to be easily and distinctly heard ; 
which may be ascertained without difficulty by observing the 
movements of the more distant auditors. 

The reasons for this rule are the following : 

1. To speak with more force than is necessary to be distinctly and easily heard by the re- 
moter part of the audience, is to incur the hazard of speaking too forcibly or loud for those 
hearers who are near ; which has an unhappy effect. 

2. To use a degree of force much greater than that of animated conversation, (and greater 
than this is scarcely ever necessary in reading and speaking to common audiences,) is what 
the organs of speech are not accustomed to, and is therefore fatiguing, and not easily sus- 
tained. 

3. The continued use of an unusual degree of force, destroys the flexibility of the voice, and 
is one of the principal causes of monotony. 

4. But the main reason for employing, in the tenor of discourse, no more force than may be 
requisite for the purpose specified in the rule, is, that the reader or speaker may have a re- 
serve for use, when the nature of the thought or sentiment or passion expressed in particular 
passages, calls for an increase of volume and power. For such emergencies, he whose de- 
livery is uniformly loud and vociferous, is never prepared. Additional force will hardly be 
remarked ; or if it attract observation, the only effect produced will be to augment the dissat- 
isfaction with which the speaker is heard. 



58 MODULATION. 

We should be careful not to confound force with vivacity. Force is strength, energy : vi- 
vacity is life, animation. Force has respect to the hearer : vivacity, to the subject. A certain 
degree of force is always necessary from the beginning of a discourse to the end : vivacity, 
on the other hand, in some parts of a discourse, as in an introduction, would be out of 
place ; and in others, as in passages highly charged with the benevolent affections, (love, 
sympathy, compassion, &c.,) incompatible with just delivery. Force to the verge of vocifera- 
tion, especially if uniform, may be associated with dulness : vivacity, never ; and yet there 
may be great vivacity in speakers who have little force. I think 1 have observed numerous 
examples of this. 

But the most important distinction between them remains to be noticed. Force is under 
the control of the will ; and is measured and regulated by the judgment: vivacity depends 
upon the feelings, and their susceptibility of excitement from the progress of discussion. The 
one is, therefore, voluntary : the other, "involuntary. A speaker can command force at any 
time : but vivacity, if it comes at all, comes without being summoned or solicited. It appears 
only, when the speaker begins to be interested in his subject ; and as this penetrates and 
warms and absorbs him, it grows apace, independently both of judgment and volition. 

The practical bearing of this distinction is obvious. Vivacity, though an essential element 
of flue elocution, is subject to no rides. All that can be said, is, that if we would have it. we 
must appreciate and profoundly feel what we read or speak : enter into its spirit : identify our- 
selves with it: yield ourselves up unreservedly to its influence. When we do this, vivacity 
will not be wanting. 

DIRECTIONS FOR EXERCISE ON FORCE. 

Select a sentence, (as under Key,) and deliver it on a given key 
with voice just sufficient to be distinctly heard : then increase the 
quantity, and continue to increase it, until the whole power of the 
voice is brought into play. When this shall have been done, re- 
verse the process : ending with a whisper. Observe : the sentence 
must be delivered without change of key. The same exercise may 
be repeated on different keys, and should be ; but during the 
process of increasing or diminishing force, the same key should be 
firmly held, and the sentence delivered with the same series of 
tones. The tendency of this exercise, which cannot be too fre- 
quently repeated, is to strengthen the voice, and give command of 
it, at the extremes of little force and great. 

The faults particularly worthy of attention under the head of force, (apart from uniformly 
too much or too little, causing a perpetual, monotonous din painful to the ear, on the one 
hand ; or constant and uncomfortable exertion on the part of the audience to hear, on the 
other.) are two. 

1. One of these is the exceedingly vicious habit of beginning every sentence successively 
with great force, and gradually diminishing, until, by the time the end is reached, the speaker is 
scarcely intelligible. Such a delivery is rarely requisite to the proper utterance of any sen- 
tence. Almost universally, at least as much force is necessary at the end as at the beginning ; 
and, not seldom more. 

2. Another fault is the abrupt employment of force. The speaker is perhaps addressing his 
audience in a low tone of voice, when suddenly he breaks out with all the force of his binge : 
giving them a shock which almost drives them from their seats. This is altogether wrong. 
Every increase of force should be gradual. It is seldom that men fly suddenly from repose, 
to the most strenuous exertion. Such violent changes of force are therefore unnatural. 
Occasions may, indeed, occur on which they are necessary ; but rarely beyond the limits of 
the drama. 

IV. RATE. 

Rate in particular passages, like force, must necessarily vary 
with the nature of the thought, the sentiment, and the emotion. 
It should not, however, be so slow that the audience may anticipate 
what we are about to say, nor so fast that we cease to articulate 
distinctly. In neither case will we be heard with any satisfaction ; 
though the second is the greater fault. We may be slow and yet 



MODULATION. 59 

intelligible ; but when a man becomes inarticulate in consequence 
of the rapidity of his utterance, he entertains his hearers with 
nothing but " sound and fury." 

The general rate, which may be retarded or accelerated accord- 
ing to circumstances, as just now implied, should be as slow as is 
consistent with commanding and sustaining the attention of the 
audience. It was a precept given by one of the most distinguished 
men of his day to Aaron Burr, " speak as slow as you can." This, 
as I have already hinted, may be carried to an extreme ; but it is 
one to which speakers seldom pass. The tendency and the temp- 
tation are in the opposite direction. If I mistake not, the opinion 
is prevalent in this country, that rapidity of utterance is a marked 
characteristic of eloquence. In consequence, it is desired and 
aimed at as an oratorical accomplishment. But this is a serious 
mistake. 

In the first place, a rapid speaker, unless he possess extraordinary mental activity, or speaks 
memoriter, will find his power of thought unable to keep pace with his current of language. 
His voice will outrun his mind ; and he will consequently speak incoherently and little to the 
purpose. 

2. Experience proves, I think, that a rapid delivery, especially at the beginning of a dis- 
course, is incompatible with that self-possession, and universal self-command, which are 
absolutely necessary to produce important oratorical effects. It throws the speaker into a 
flutter of spirits which, at the same time, confounds memory, confuses thought, and embar- 
rasses action. 

3. Of good elocution, distinct articulation is a fundamental requisite ; and this, in connection 
with rapid delivery, is very rare. The slow speaker may articulate badly ; but it has seldom 
been my good fortune to hear a rapid speaker who articulated well. 

4. A slow delivery in general, is, I conceive, absolutely necessary, in conformity with what 
I have said above, to enable a reader or speaker to comply with the demands of sentiment 
and emotion. The rapid speaker cannot increase his rate, and yet the sentiment of a sen- 
tence or paragraph may demand a very considerably accelerated, and even a hurried utter- 
ance in comparison with the general rate, in order to give it due expression. For such emer- 
gencies, the slow speaker is alone prepared ; and they are emergencies which afford both 
reader and speaker the best opportunities for the highest achievements of the rhetorical ait.* 

DIRECTIONS FOR EXERCISE ON RATE. 

Select a sentence as before, and deliver it as slow, (without 
drawling,) as may be possible. Repeat the delivery with a slight 
increase of rate : continue to repeat and increase the rate, until 
you shall have reached a rapidity of utterance at which distinct 
articulation ceases. Having done this, reverse the process and 
repeat slower and slower. 

Ability to increase and diminish rate at pleasure, is a very im- 
portant element of good reading and speaking, and can be acquired 
only by the practice here recommended ; which, as well as the 
preceding exercises on key and force, contributes to the acquisition 
of that perfect command of the voice, necessary to express with 
propriety every variety of thought to be met with in a discourse. 

* Nee volubilitate nimia confundenda quas dicimus ; qua et distinctio perit, et affectus ; et 
nonnunquam etiam verba aliqua sui parte fraudantur. Cui contrarium est vitium nimiae tar- 
ditatis. Nam et difficultatem inveniendi fatetur, et segnitia solvit animos, et in quo est aliquid, 
temporibus praafinitis aquam perdit.— Q uinc. b. xi .ch. 3. 



60 CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 



CHAPTER IV 



CLASSIFICATION AND DESCRIPTION OF SENTENCES. 

A proposition is a series of words expressing a complete thought. 
e. g. " Omniscience is an attribute of God." "A man who walks 
ten miles a day, will walk seventy in a week." 

A sentence contains one proposition, or two or more related 
propositions. The preceding examples contain each one propo- 
sition. The following one contains two. " It was the third hour ; 
and they crucified him." 

Every sentence in the English language is either simple or 
compound. 

1. A simple sentence is one which contains a single proposition 
having but one subject and one verb : e. g. Jesus wept. Beauty is 
admired. Caesar conquered the Gauls. 

Note 1. The infinitive mood is not treated in this work as a verb. {See " Course of Reading," 
Part I. iii. 6.) 

Note 2. Though a simple sentence can have but one subject and one verb, it by no means 
follows, that it can have nothing besides. The number of its words may be indefinitely in- 
creased without changing its simple character. In the third of the examples given, there is not 
only a subject, and finite verb, but an object: "the Gauls." To this, we may add the time 
daring which, " in a few months," and the time at which. " a little before the beginning of the 
Christian era." With this we may connect the means : " some thousands of men." We may 
give Caesar an attribute: "the immortal Caesar." We may qualify the verb: "easily con- 
quered." We may qualify even that qualification: "very easily." And so on. Comprising 
all these additions in one sentence, we have the following: "The immortal Caesar very easily 
conquered the Gauls in a few months, a little before the beginning of the Christian era, with 
some thousands of men ;" which is still a simple sentence, because, notwithstanding the addi- 
tions made to it, it has but one subject and one verb. 

2. A compound sentence is one which contains either a single 
proposition, having two or more subjects or verbs, or two or more 
propositions, having indifferently one subject and verb, or two or 
more subjects and verbs connected by conjunctions, adverbs, or rela- 
tive pronouns, expressed or understood. 

For the different kinds of connection formed by conjunctions, adverbs and relative pronouns, 
see " Course of Reading," p. 34, 32, 23 ; and examples of close, compact and loose sentences 
below. 

(a.) When a single proposition only is expressed, that proposition 
is either absolute or conditional. 

Examples of the absolute. 

Exercise and temperance strengthen the constitution. The ani- 
mals turned, looked and ran away. Take off his chains and use 



CLASSIFICATION OP SENTENCES. 61 

him well. They rejected with contempt the ceremonious homage, 
which other sects substituted for the pure worship of the soul. 
He who is disposed to deny this, cannot have given much attention 
to the subject. Peace be with you all that are in Christ Jesus. 
God made man erect, rational, free, immortal. 

Examples of the conditional. 

Though he fall, he will rise again. As in Adam all died, so in 
Christ shall all be made alive. If he give me permission, I will go 
with you. 1 When he comes, then you may go. People are happy, 
because they are good. 

Obs. 1. The pails of these sentences beginning with though, as, if, when, and because, ex- 
press respectively the condition of the other parts with which they are connected. 

Obs. 2. It is obvious that I use the term " conditional" here with a very extensive significa- 
tion when I indicate by it the peculiar relation which the one part of each of these sentences 
bears to the other ; but I can think of no better word to express the same meaning ; and if it 
be understood that I mean by a conditional proposition one that always contains parts thus 
related, though sometimes not in the strict sense, conditionally, there will be no danger of 
mistake. 

(6.) When two or more propositions are connected, these propo- 
sitions may be either simple or compound, in the sense of the second 
half of the definition of compound sentences ; i. e. they may be 
propositions, having either one subject and verb, or two or more 
subjects or verbs. 

Examples of the first. 

It was the third hour ; and they crucified him. This is at best 
a shallow quality : in objects of eternal moment, it is poisonous to 
society. v 

Examples of the second. 

He was a tall and very spare old man : his head, which was 
covered with a white linen cap, his shrivelled hands, and his voice, 
were all shaken under the influence of a palsy ; and a few moments 
ascertained to me, that he was perfectly blind. 

Note 1. An absolute compound sentence, except when compound by the insertion of a rela- 
tive clause, {see Note 2. 6, below,) is merely an abbreviated method of giving utterance to several 
simple sentences without the repetition of the sanTfe verbs, attributes, objects, &c, by simply 
stating once what is common to all. e. g. w Exercise strengthens the constitution :" " temperance 
strengthens the constitution." Strengthens the constitution, being common to both of these 
simple sentences, its repetition is suppressed, when they are united in a compound structure. 
e. g. " Exercise and temperance strengthen the constitution." 

Note 2. When the pupil declares a sentence compound, he should, at the same time, indi- 
cate the mode in which the compound structure is formed : being governed in doing this by 
what is expressed, not by what is understood. For example, in reply to the question, In what 
respect is this sentence compound, he will say, It has 

1. Two or more subjects : e. g. " Exercise and temperance strengthen the constitution ;" or 

2. Two or more verbs : e. g. " The animals turned, looked and ran away ;" or 

3. Two or more attributes : e. g. " God made man erect, rational, free, immortal;" " He 
gave promptly and generously ;" or 

4. Two or more objects: e.g. "He bought a farm and stock ;" or 

5. Two or more adjuncts or prepositional clauses: e.g. "The man of fortune, or of fame, ia 
not secure in his possession." 

6 



62 CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 

6. A relative clause : e. g. " Peace be with you all that are in Christ Jesus ;" or 

7. Correlative clauses: e.g. "When he comes, then you may go;" or 

8. Distinct propositions: e.g. "It was the third hour; and they crucified him." 
Sometimes several of these different kinds of compound structure may be combined. When 

this occurs, the pupil should be required to state the fact. 

Note 3. It should be understood, that while analyzing a compound structure we have re- 
gard only for the subjects, verbs, attributes, objects and adjuncts, expressed, as in No. 1, 2, 3, 
4, 5. We by no means assert that these expressed subjects, verbs, &c. exhaust the elements of 
the compound structure. There are always, in fact, as many verbs expressed or understood as 
there are subjects expressed ; and vice versa ; as many subjects and verbs, as attributes ; &c. &c. 

All sentences, whether simple or compound, are comprehended 
in three classes : the declarative, the interrogative and exclamatory. 

I. Declarative sentences state or declare something, affirmatively 
or negatively, in some one or more of the various relations, of time 
past, present or future ; as true or false ; absolute or conditional ; 
possible or impossible ; certain or contingent ; kc. <fec. 

II. Interrogative sentences are such as contain questions. 

III. Exclamatory sentences are such as are employed to express 
emotion or passion. 

SEC. I. SIMPLE SENTENCES. 

Punctuation. All simple sentences terminate with the period, 
or its representative, the interrogation or exclamation point. 

As no part of a simple sentence can separately make perfect 
sense ; in other words, inasmuch as simple sentences make, at every 
point, except at the end, imperfect sense ; the comma is the only 
intermediate pause which they admit ; (See Plate, figure 8 ;) and 
this is admissible only in the following cases. 

1. When the subject or nominative case is followed by an in- 
separable adjunct of some length, a comma may be inserted imme- 
diately before the verb : e. g. 

The good taste of the present enlightened age, has not allowed 
us to neglect the cultivation of the English language. To be to- 
tally indifferent to praise or censure, is a real defect of character. 

2. When the connection is interrupted by a circumstance, a 
comma may be inserted both before and after it. 

For a full explanation of the circumstance, and its appropriate punctuation, see the end of 
this classification ; and also Punctuation, Comma, cases of omission, 3. 

3. When the natural order of the sentence is reversed by transpo- 
sition, a comma may be inserted between the parts transposed : e. g. 

In the day of trouble, I called on the name of the Lord. Of 
all this, I was ignorant. Under these circumstances, he gave up 
the contest. 

4. When the sentence is long, and the natural order unchanged, 
a comma may be inserted between parts which admit of transpo- 
sition : e. g. 



CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 63 

He began with censuring the ministry very severely, for delay- 
ing to give earlier notice to parliament of the disturbances in 
America. 

CLASS I. SIMPLE DECLAKATIVE SENTENCES. 
(See Definition of a simple sentence, and also of a declarative sentence.) 

Examples. 

I fear the consequences. I will shortly return. You should 
acknowledge your faults. He has been a long time ill. Hold thy 
peace. Fear God. The windows of heaven were opened. The 
poor are often in want of the necessaries of life. Public wisdom, 
on some occasions, must condescend to give way to popular folly. 

Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain. 
The prosperity of the wicked is not durable. Be not desirous of 
vain-glory. Be not forward in the presence of your superiors. 
He was not, at that time, in the city. 

By means of their standing armies, they have every one lost 
their liberties. Besides this powerful engine of government, he had 
a most extraordinary talent of persuading men to his purpose. As 
to the temporal side of the question, I can have no dispute with 
you. _ 

This fastened on my mind more strongly, from its beauty being 
unexpected. He found in them the guileless manner of the earli- 
est times, with the culture of the most refined ones. 

The first of these paragraphs contains affirmative simple declarative sentences ; one of them 
only, (the last,) requiring intermediate punctuation : the second contains negative simp. decl. ; 
the last only, as before, requiring intermediate punctuation : the third contains examples of 
transposition : the fourth examples of possible transposition, though not actually transposed, 
and punctuated accordingly. 



YES, YEA, AY, AYE J NO, NAY J WELL. 

The words, yes, with its equivalents yea, ay and aye, no, with its 
equivalent nay and well, when employed elliptically, have some 
peculiarities which may, perhaps, be as well explained in connec- 
tion with simple declaratives, as anywhere else, i As much that I 
shall say about them, may not be perfectly intelligible until we 
shall have reached a more advanced stage of the classification, the 
examination should be deferred until the classification shall have 
been thoroughly committed to memory and understood. 

1. Yes and no. 

1. When these words or their equivalents, merely reply to a 
question, or assent to or deny a proposition, in other words when 
they are used singly and independently, they represent simple or 
compound sentences, and are to be treated as such : e. g. 



b4 classification of sentences. 

Is your master at home ? Yes. Is your brother well ? Yes. 

You are not wounded, father f No. But the young hero fell 
not f ]S T o. 

Are they those whom want compels to toil for their daily 
bread ? No. 

Yes and no, in the first four of these examples, represent simple declarative sentences, and 
consequently are themselves to be considered and treated as simple declaratives. The sen- 
tences successively represented are these : " He is at home :" " My brother is well :" u I am not 
wounded;" "The young hero fell not." 

In the fifth example, no represents the following compound sentence ; and it must itself 
therefore be treated as a compound sentence : "• They are not those whom want compels to 
toil lor their daily bread." 

In order, then, to determine when yes or no is simple or com- 
pound, it must be ascertained, in the first place, whether it is used 
independently ; that is, unconnected with any thing succeeding it, 
expressed or understood ; and then, secondly, whether the sentence 
it represents is simple or compound. 

With regard to the last particular, there is little danger of mis- 
take ; for the sentence, preceding yes or no, always contains the 
sentence represented by it. Nor is it difficult to ascertain the first, 
when the connection is expressed and properly punctuated. But 
this is not always the case ; for sometimes the connection is under- 
stood ; and sometimes, if expressed, yes and no are separated from 
it by the period, or by what is supposed to be its representative, an 
exclamation point. In such cases, these words appear to be simple 
sentences, or what is the same, to represent simple sentences, when 
they are actually parts of compound sentences : e. g. 

Are they those whom want compels to toil for their daily bread ? 
No. The labors of such are the very blessings of their condition. 

What will content you ? Talent ? No ! Enterprise ? No ! Cour- 
age ? No ! Reputation ? No ! Virtue ? No ! The men whom you 
would select, should possess, not one, but all of these. 

In the first of these examples, no is not independent, though it seems to be so, in conse- 
quence of the period after it, but is closely connected with the succeeding words, together with 
which it forms a double compact sentence, with the first and second part expressed. (See 
Double Compact below.) The longest pause which can be properly inserted between these 
parts, is the semicolon. (See Punctuation of the Single Compact betoic.) 

JYo, in the second example, is not more independent than in the first. It is the first part of 
a double compact as before, with the second and all the other parts understood. Completed, 
it would read thus : " Talent ? No, but something more," &c, or thus : " Talent ? No, lor the 
men whom I would select, should possess not talent merely, but enterprise, courage, repu- 
tation and virtue." 

2. These words are often emphatically repeated : e. g. 

Is he indeed a villain? No: no. Will you accept my offer? 
Yes : yes. 

When thus repeated, though independent of a sequent connection, the repetition as such, 
forms a compound loose sentence ; for the sentences, represented by yes and no, being substi- 
tuted, we should have the following : " He is not a villain : he is not a >illain." " I will accept 
your offer : I will accept your offer." These are loose sentences. (See Loose Sentence below.) 

3. With or without repetition, yes and no are often followed by 
the sentences they represent : e. g. 



CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 65 

1. Without repetition. 

Ag. I am going to walk in the garden. 

Har. And so am I. 

Ag. You are ? 

Har. Yes : I am. 

Car. Does he remain here ? 

Am. No : he does not remain here. 

2. With repetition. 

2c? Soldier. We will command ourselves. For Milan, comrades. 
5th Soldier. Ay : aye : for Milan. 

Ah ! no ! no ! no ! 
It cannot be ! 

Taking the last sentence as an example of all, and substituting the equivalent for no in each 
instance, the following perfect loose sentence will be the result : " Ah ! it cannot be : it cannot 
be: it cannot be: it cannot be." (See, as above, Perfect Loose Sentence.) 

4. I have hitherto, except incidentally, spoken of yes and no, as 
being employed independently ; that is, without being followed by 
any thing with which they could combine and form compound sen- 
tences. I shall now show that they do this ; and that all the pecu- 
liarities I have pointed out, follow them in this new relation. 

1. They are employed singly : e. g. 
Berth. Wilt thou wear it ? 
Ethw. Yes, and press it too. 
Freb. It is Jane de Montfort. 

Lady. No ; such description suits not- her. 
Berth. What ! Ethward, say ye ? 
Sig. No ; it is Selred. 

Sel. What tidings, man ? Is Ethwald at the gate ? 
Ser. No, nor yet within the walls. 
Wog. My place of strength ? 
Fol. Yes : I spake with one new from the west, 
Who saw the ruinous broil. 

The first example is a close sentence : (see Close :) the second, double compact with the first 
and second part expressed : the third, the same with the first and third part expressed : the 
fourth, the same with the first part only expressed, but this comprising two members : the fifth 
is a loose sentence. 

2. They are employed with repetition : e. g. 
Ethw. You weep, good Ethelbert. 

Eth. Yes ; yes ; such tears as doth the warm showered earth- 
Show kindly to the sun. 
Freb. My friend, your face is pale : have you been ill ? 
De Mm. No Freberg : no : I think I have been well. 

6* 



66 CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 

Her. I beseech you, let me stay with you. 
Ray. No : no : no ! speak of this no more. 

The first of these sentences is a single compact: the second and third are both loose. 

3. Single with the represented sentence inserted : e. g. 
Jane. And he is well you say f 

Freb. Yes, well, but joyless. 

Etliw. It is some night-bird screaming on the tower. 

Boy. Ay, so belike it seemeth, but I know — 

JSthw. What dost thou know V 

Etliw. Thou dost not grieve I am safe returned f 

Berth. no, I do not grieve, yet I must weep. 

These sentences are all of them single compacts. 

4. Repeated and followed by the represented sentence : e. g. 

Mrs. B. I do think I could contrive to find you employment if 
you are inclined to it. 

Charles. Yes : yes : I am inclined to it : idleness is tiresome. 

Mrs. B. you are wounded, Baltimore. 

True. No ; no ! there are no wounds ; we are victorious. 

Thco. Hear me, I do entreat thee. 

Out. Nay, nay ! no foolish pleadings, for thy life 



-.-j, — j . -~ — - — r *~ j,- 

Is forfeit now : [have at thee.J 



Under the preceding head, each of the sentences is a single compact ; {which see ;) but under 
this, the first is loose : the second and third are double compacts. (See Double Compact below.) 

2. Well. 

This word is not a representative like yes and no, but an elliptical 
expression for such forms as, "It is well," "You say well," "I 
know well," " If it be well," " As it is well," " Since it is well," &c. 

1. It is a simple sentence when employed independently, like yes 
and no, for assent or approval : e. g. 

Do I say well ? Well. He did well f Very well. 

2. It is often independently repeated, like yes and no, and then ■ 
forms, in like manner, a perfect loose sentence : e. g. 

At. You will never see him again. 
Tob. Well: well. 

3. In the main, however, it is employed in connection with words 
following, like yes and no, and then forms, in like manner, several 
species of compound sentences. Like them, too, in such a connec- 
tion, it is employed with or without repetition : e. g. 



CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 67 

Har. Would they have a man give up the woman of his heart, 
because she likes a bit of lace upon her petticoat ? 
Roy. Well, but she is, &c. &c. 

Est. Do you know, last night, before twilight, I peeped over 
the blind, and saw him walking with slow, pensive steps, under my 
window? 

Mar. Well ; what happened then £ 

Est. I drew in my head, you may be sure ; but a little while 
after I peeped out again, and, do you know, I saw him coming out 
of the perfumer's, just opposite my dressing-room, where he had 
been all the while ? 

Mar. Very well ; and what happened then ? 
jRos. One fault he has : I .know but only one : 
His too great love of military fame 
Absorbs his thoughts, and makes him oft appear 
Unsocial and severe. 
Fred. Well ; feel / not undaunted in the field ? 
As much enthusiastic love of glory ? 
Why am I not as good a man as he ? 
Jer. Alas, my lord, she's dead. 
De Mon. Well ; then she is at rest. 
Jer. How well, my lord ? 

De Mon. Is she not with the dead, the quiet dead, where all is 
peace ? 

Jer. Oh, I am stunned ! My head is cracked in twain : 

Your honor does forget how old I am. 
Be Mon. Well ; well ; the wall is harder than I wist. 
With. I will have an end put to all this foolery. 
Mar. Very well ; I have just been following your advice. 

All these examples of well, in connection with sequent matter, are compact sentences, of 
which well constitutes the first part : the first four having the correlative words, indeed — but, 
expressed or understood, and the last three, therefore — because, understood. 

Before closing my remarks on this word, I should say that, like yes and no, it often appears 
to he single and independent, in consequence of the suppression of a part of the sentence, when, 
such being the case, it is, of course, in connection with the suppressed portion, compound. 
For an example, see Ch. VI., Simple Declarative Sentences, Note 



CLASS II. SIMPLE INTERROGATIVE SENTENCES. 
(See Definition of a simple sentence, and also of an interrogative.) 

Simple interrogative sentences are either definite, indefinite, or 
indirect. 

1. The definite are those which begin with verbs, and may be 
answered by yes or no. 

Note. They are called definite, because they limit the answer to yes or no, or the equiva- 
lent of these words. 



68 CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 

Examples. 
Will you ride to town to-day ? Am I my brother's keeper ? Were 
there not ten cleansed ? Will ye also go away ? Is any among you 
afflicted ? Do ye not hear the law ? Are they ministers of Christ ? 
Do ye look on things after the outward appearance ? Have all the 
gifts of healing ? Have not we power to forbear working ? Could 
ye not watch one hour ? Should not children obey their parents in 
all things ? 

2. The indefinite are such as begin with adverbs and relative 
pronouns, and cannot be answered by yes or no. 

Note. They are called indefinite, because they do not, like the definite, limit the answer ; 
as, " When did we last meet V To this the answer may be any one of a thousand that are 
possible, and may be supposed. 

Examples. 
Where did we last meet ? When will you leave town ? At what 
hour, this evening, will the moon rise $ Why was this important 
fact concealed ? By whom was the deed done ? Which of the two 
is the most admired ? How is the object, in view, to be secured ? 
Wherefore then serve th the law? Who can estimate the influence 
of the Sabbath school ? 

The adverb why, when employed as in the passages which follow, though usually regarded 
as a mere expletive, is unquestionably an abbreviated indefinite interrogative. 

And" who, I pray, is to judge of their necessity ? Why, the King. 

" Sir," — and so forth. — " Why, yes : the thing is fact, 

Though in regard to number, not exact : 

It was not two black crows, 'twas only one : 

The truth of that you may depend upon : 

The gentleman himself told me the case." — 

"Where may I find him ?" — " Why, — in such a place." 

In each of these instances, why is obviously equivalent to the interrogative sentence, " Why 
ask the question." 

When was formerly used in the same way : e. g. 

Why, when, I say — Nay, good sweet Kate, be merry. 

Taming the Shrew, IV, 1. 
When, Harry, when, — 
Obedience bids : I should not bid again. King Richard II, 1, 1. 

3. The indirect are interrogatives in a declarative form. 

Note 1. It woidd be, perhaps, more correct to say, with a declarative structure. In declara- 
tive sentences, the subject properly, and almost uniformly, precedes the verb. This is what 
is meant by the declarative form or structure. In an interrogative sentence, (see definite and 
indefinite interrogatives,) the verb, at least the auxiliary verb, precedes the subject. This is 
what is meant by the interrogative structure or form. 

Note 2. But this is not the only characteristic of the indirect interrogative. When a person 
employs the definite or indefinite question, he represents himself as wholly ignorant of the 
subject matter of inquiry, and as desiring information : when he employs the indirect ques- 
tion, he represents himself as assuming the subject matter of inquiry, and as desiring con- 
firmation. 

Note 3. The name of this question is derived from its nature ; or the manner in which it is 
put ; i. e. indirectly. 



CLASSIFICATION OF* SENTENCES. 69 

" Indeed, the trapper was left to renew the dialogue himself; which he soon did by asking 
a question in the indirect manner so much in use by the border inhabitants. ' You found it 
no easy matter to ford the water-courses, and make your way so deep into the prairies, friend, 
with teams of horses and herds of horned beasts '?' " Cooper. 

Indirect interrogatives are of three kinds. 

1. The first does not differ, except in structure, as noticed in 
note 1, above, and in the peculiarity noticed in note 2, from definite 
interrogatives. 

Examples of the first kind. 
You will go to the city of New York next week%f You will 
convey my message f They never were heard of afterward f He 
refused obedience f 

2. The second kind is distinguished by being used exclusively in 
supplication. 

Examples of the second hind. 
Lady, 
Dear Queen that ended when I but began, 
Give me that hand of yours to kiss f 

The last line, which is all I quote as an example of simple indirect, is evidently equivalent 
to " Will you give me that hand of yours to kiss?" (See Indirect Interrogatives, Ch. VI.) 

3. The third kind occurs where a proposition is expressed with 
such confidence in its truth, as precludes contradiction, and com- 
mands assent. 

Examples of the third kind. 

Surely, sir, I have seen you before f Truly, this was the Son 
of God f 

Out jumps the gardener in a fright, 
And runs away with all his might ; 
And as he runs, impressed with dread, 
Exclaims, " Sure Satan's in the shed f " 

The exclamation here, which is all that I quote as example, together with the sentences 
which precede, are manifestly equivalent to questions : differing only from other questions 
in the direct form, in that they take the answer for granted. As the examples show, this 
question may be put to another or to one's self. The third kind always, or almost always, 
includes some word like sure, surely, truly, certainly, &c, by which it may be distinguished. 

CLASS III. SIMPLE EXCLAMATORY SENTENCES. 
(See Definition of simple sentence, and also of an exclamatory.) 

Simple exclamatory sentences are declarative, interrogative, com- 
petitive* and spontaneous. 

* We make use of speech only to communicate our thoughts to others ; and consequently 
our language is always addressed to some one. That those to whom we speak, may know 
that we are addressing them, we call upon them, either by name, or some equivalent ex- 
pression, proper to fix their attention. Thus : I say, " Victor, you are not attentive ;" " Lord ! 
I am thy creature:" "Sir, are you my friend?" These words, "Victor," " Lord," " Sir," 
make no part of the proposition. I shall call this part of speech a Compilative, from a 
Latin word which signifies "to address, to accost." (De Sacv. Principles of General 
Grammar.) 



70 CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 

1. Declarative. These are so called, because they are de- 
clarative sentences employed as exclamations. In other words, 
they are declarative sentences which, besides expressing a thought, 
express it with emotion. 

Examples. 
He died a madman ! It is impossible ! May that time never 
come ! Happy are they ! May the will of the Lord be done ! 
Not for the world would I peril my soul by such a deed ! God 
grant to those few friends courage to declare themselves in oppo- 
sition to your formidable enemies ! Thus was felt his despotism 
over the heart ! 

The declarative exclamatory sentence is not always entire : it is often a mere fragment, the 
complement of which must be supplied, perhaps interred, from the context : e.g. 

Impossible ! Beautiful ! Happy day ! What is life ? A 
shadow ! Di$ you, sir, throw up a black crow ? Not I ! Cruel 
fortune ! Delusive hopes ! Piercing thought ! This to me ! 

The complete sentence in each of these cases is as follows: It is impossible! This is a 
happy day ! That is beautiful ! Lite is a shadow ! 1 did not throw up a black crow ! This 
is a cruel fortune ! These are delusive hopes ! It is a piercing thought ! This is said to me ! 

Whenever a fragmentary sentence occurs, the student should supply the portion of the 
sentence suppressed. This observation, which is an important one, is made once for all. 

2. Interrogative ; which are so called, because they assume 
interrogative forms. They are definite, indefinite and indirect. 

1. THE definite. 
Examples. 
Do you envy my good fortune ! Are you mad ! Is it indeed 
so ! Hath it not burst upon thee ! Seest thou that old man 
there ! Art thou my father ! Is this to me ! Could he possibly, 
at his years, be guilty of an outrage like that ! Darest thou thus 
provoke me ! 

These, like the declarative, appear very often in fragments. 

Are his talents adequate to the occasion ? Adequate ! — Will he 
succeed ? Succeed ! — Will you go there? I go there ! Never. — 
He is a thief. A thief ! I cannot believe it. 

Note. It is not easy to distinguish this sentence, when fragmentary, from the fragmentary 
declarative on the one hand, and the fragmentary compact, hereafter to be noticed, on the 
other. When it is a mere echo, as in three of the examples above, there is little difficulty ; 
but this is not always the case, in a given passage, the only criterion is the sense. 

2. THE INDEFINITE. 

Examples. 

Why do I suffer so many sorrows ! How can I endure them ! 
When will they cease pressing me to the dust ! What could I 
have done to provoke thus the thunderbolts of heaven against my 



CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 71 

defenceless head ! With what feelings must an intelligent heathen 
approach his final catastrophe ! How hard would it seem for your 
neighbors to neglect your misery ! How pale ! How silent ! How vain ! 

How and what often appear alone at the beginning of sentences 
as exclamations : e. g. 

But how and by what means ? 

What ! not a word ! 

What ! shall we be told that the exasperated feelings of a 
people were excited ? 

How ! will you suffer your glory to be sullied ? 

In these and similar instances, they are used to call for a repe- 
tition of a previous remark not understood ; or too shocking, won- 
derful or absurd to be received in the sense understood : they are 
employed not unlike the second interrogative who, in the following 
passage : 

Who are thine accusers ? Who ? 
The living ! they who never felt thy power, 
And know thee not ! 

Note. The expletive why, already noticed, (sec Simple Indefinite Interrogative,) when it 
does not represent an indefinite question, is employed, though with less deliberation, in the 
same way. This supposition will account for the difference observable in its delivery : it 
having sometimes the delivery of a regular indefinite interrogative, and at others, that of 
how and what, as above. 

3. THE INDIRECT. 

1. Examples of the first kind. 
You would not screen a traitor from the law ! Thou wouldst 
not have me make a trial of my skill upon my child ! Impossible. 

2. Examples of the second kind. 

Let me not perish in this horrid manner ! Grant me this favor 
for once ! 

Examples of this second kind of indirect interrogative exclamation, are somewhat rare; 
though they occur more frequently than is generally supposed : especially in the drama, and 
in prose of a colloquial description. In conversation they frequently occur. 

3. Examples of the third kind. 
You are surely mistaken in that supposition ! She will certainly 
get lost in this wilderness of streets ! You surely will not deprive 
me of my only pleasure in life ! 

3. Compellative. These are single names, used in the direct 
address. 

Examples. 
Mary ! Jesus ! Master ! My lord ! Mr. President ! Mr. Chair- 
man ! Sir! Gentlemen! Soldiers! Fellow-Citizens! Ye winds! 



72 CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 

Ye waves ! Ye Waters ! Hypocrites ! Ye blind leaders of the 
blind ! &c. &c. 

4. Spontaneous : being so called, because they are, for the 
most part, "uttered without deliberation. 

They may be divided, with sufficient accuracy, into abbreviations 
of simple sentences, (including a few formed from sounds which 
they imitate,) and equivalents of simple sentences : the former hav- 
ing an invariable, and the latter a variable delivery. 

1. Examples of the Abbreviations. 
Hold ! Ho ! Shame ! Hail ! Look ! Lo ! Hush ! Hist ! Farewell ! 
Fie ! Pshaw ! Pish ! Pugh ! Foh ! Hey-day ! Heigh-ho ! Mum ! 
A vaunt! Avast! Away! Whoh ! Hurra! Halloo! Tush! Tut! 
Fudge ! Bah ! Heavens ! My stars ! &c. &c. 

Note. The abbreviated character of many of these exclamations, is too obvious to need 
illustration: the others, having lost their original meaning, in consequence of being dropped 
from the language, except ay mere symbols of certain emotions which they serve to express, 
may need explanation. For this the reader is referred to the '• Diversions of Purley," and 
Richardson's Dictionary. Be it sufficient to say here, that pshaw and pish, which are dif- 
ferent forms of the same word, are abbreviations of the simple sentence, " It is /m'sA," i. e. trum- 
pery, trick ; fie, foh faugh, fough, (also different forms of the same word,) of the simple sen- 
tence, u It is fough !" i. e. hateful ; and so with the remaining words. 

2. Examples of Equivalents. 
! Oh ! Ah ! Eh ! Ha ! Hah ! Aha ! Alas ! Alack ! 

This enumeration comprises, I believe, all that occur. 

SEC. II. COMPOUND SENTENCES. 
(See Definition of a compoimd sentence.) 

Compound sentences are either close, compact or loose. 

I. The close sentence contains a single absolute proposition, hav- 
ing two or more subjects or verbs, connected by conjunctions, ad- 
verbs or relative pronouns, expressed or understood. (See exam- 
ples of the close below.) 

Note 1. This sentence may have a series of similar members at the beguming, in the 
middle, or at the end. (See examples of the close below.) 

Note 2. The name of this sentence is derived from its nature : its members being so 
closely connected, that they cannot be separated without injury to the sense : in other words, 
it makes imperfect sense until the end is reached. 

Punctuation. A close sentence excludes, except in cases of 
allowable deviation, (see exception 3, below,) every pause longer than 
the comma. The following rule will be found, I believe, to be at 
once comprehensive and exact : a comma should or may be inserted 
before all the copulatives expressed or understood ; or what is the 
same thing in other words, between all the simple sentences of 
which the compound close is composed. 



CLASSIFICATION OE SENTENCES. 73 

The exceptions to this rule,* which is too simple to need illustra- 
tion, are these : 

1. The cases specified in Chap. II, Punct. Comma: Cases of 
Omission. 

2. When two or more nouns, verbs, adjectives or adverbs, un- 
attended by other words, have the copulative expressed between 
them, the comma is omitted : e. g. 

Intelligence and beauty and modesty are the principal charms of 
woman. Virtue and vice form a strong contrast to each other. 
The study of natural history expands and elevates the mind. It 
was dexterously and quickly and neatly done. True worth is 
modest and retired. Some men sin deliberately and presump- 
tuously. 

The husband, wife and children suffered extremely. In a letter, 
we may advise, exhort, comfort, request and discuss. Success 
generally depends on acting prudently, steadily and vigorously, in 
what we undertake. 

There is a natural difference between merit and demerit, virtue 
and vice, wisdom and folly. Truth is fair and artless, simple and 
sincere, uniform and consistent. Whether we eat or drink, labor 
or sleep, we should be moderate. 

It will be observed, that as soon as the copulative is suppressed, as in the second paragraph 
of examples, the comma appears. 

When the last copulative is expressed, as in the same paragraph, practice, as regards the 
omission of the comma, is not uniform. Some insert it notwithstanding the presence of the 
copulative; but, in the opinion of the author, incorrectly. 

The exception now under consideration, extends no farther than the particular case speci- 
fied : when the nouns, verbs, adjectives or adverbs, are attended by other words, preceding 
or following, the comma is inserted before the copulative ; or, though unattended as before, 
if the copulative be suppressed, the comma is inserted in its place. 

3. An exception to the insertion of the comma, occurs, when it 
is superseded, under the necessity of deviating from proper punctu- 
ation, by the semicolon. {See Punctuation, Chap. Ill, Deviations 
I ; also Plate, figure 9, b.) 

II. The compact sentence is distinguished from every other by 
consisting of parts, beginning with correlative words expressed or 
understood. 

The term compact is applied to this sentence, because the parts are, as it were, bound to- 
gether, compacted by the correlative words at the beginning of the parts. The name was first 
used by Walker. (See Elocution.) 

Correlative words are words which mutually relate to each other ; as in the examples 
which follow. 

The principal of these correlatives, or those which most frequently 
occur, are the following : such — as ; so — as ; so — that ; if — 
then ; if — yet ; though — yet ; unless — then ; now, then — 
while ; where — there ; either — or ; whether — or ; though, al- 

* Not to the rule strictly speaking, but rather to the application of the rule by printers. 

7 



74 CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES, 

though — nevertheless ; forasmuch as, inasmuch as — insomuch ; 
indeed, truly — but ; therefore — because, for, since ; more, rather, 
better, richer, stronger, &c. — than. 

Note 1. They are usually placed at the beginning of the parts which they qualify, and in 
the order in which I have written them ; but their order is frequently reversed, and often, 
instead of occupying their appropriate places at the beginning of the parts, they are brought 
together in the middle of the sentence: one of them only occupying its proper position. This 
is particularly the case with more, rather, <$c — than. e. g. 

K Rather than submit this fair land of their inheritance to ravage and dishonor, from hoary 
age to helpless infancy, they will form one united bidwark and oppose their breasts to the 
opposing foe :" i. e. rather will they form, &c, than submit, &c. Other correlatives also are 
sometimes, though less frequently, found transposed in the same way. e. g. " When, if you 
see my limbs convulsed, my teeth clenched, my hair bristling, and cold dews trembling on my 
brow, seize me ;" i. e., if you see, &c, then seize, &c. 

Note 2. Some of these correlatives are idiomatically interchanged. As sometimes takes 
the place of when : the correlative of then. e. g. " As Peter knocked at the door of the gate, 
a damsel came to hearken, named Rhoda ;" i. e. when Peter, &c, then a damsel, &c. K As he 
was going there, he met his brother ;" when he, <fcc, then he, &c. As is also sometimes used 
for because : the correlative of therefore, e. g. " As he is of age, his lather is not responsible 
for his conduct ;" i. e. because he is, &c, therefore his father, &c. 

If is occasionally used for whether : the correlative of or. e. g. " Let any man look at the 
degraded condition of this country before the war, &c, and tell me if we have gained nothing 
by the war;" i. e. whether we have, &c, or not. 

In the following passage though is clearly a substitute and no very good one for if: the cor- 
relative of then : " Is every thing subservient to me, as though I had ordered all myself?" 
i. e. as if. 

Note 3. Frecpiently two or more correlatives are brought together with the parts to which 
they belong suppressed. The preceding sentence is a good example of this ; which if fully 
expressed would read thus: Is every thing so subservient to me, as then it would be, if I had 
ordered all myself? 

Compact sentences are either single or double. 

1. The single compact sentence consists of two parts, with a 
correlative word at the beginning of each. (See Examples of Single 
Compact below.) 

Three Forms of the Single Compact. 

Sometimes both of these correlatives are expressed : sometimes 
only one of them : sometimes neither. If both are expressed, the 
sentence is called a single compact of the first form : if only one, a 
single compact of the second form : if neither, a single compact of 
the third form. (See Examples of Single Compact below.) 

Note. Occasionally, but rarely, two of these forms may be found irregularly combined in 
the same sentence. The following is an example of the second and third forms combined : if 
then being the correlatives. 

" Were it not for this, or if men were to live on from childhood to old age in the same 
mood of feeling, and holding fast to the same unvarying topic of interest, they would grow to 
be little more thau animals of one thought;" i. e. if it were not, &c, if men, &cc, then they 
would, &c. 

The third form comprises five varieties. For a description of 
these, and examples, see Examples of Single Compact, 3d form, 
below. 

Punctuation. Since the correlative words, whether expressed 
or understood, always imply each other, the first part of the sen- 
tence alone, must contain imperfect sense. The proper punctuation 
between the parts, is therefore that of the comma. 



CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 75 

To this however there are two exceptions : 

1. The cases specified in the 1st law of Deviation from proper 
punctuation. (See Punctuation, Deviation I.) 

II. The comma gives place to the semicolon, where both of the 
correlatives are understood : e. g. 

"It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption. It is 
sown in dishonor ; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness ; it 
is raised in power. It is sown a natural body ; it is raised af spiritual 
body." 

" But not all the chapters of human history are thus important ; 
the annals of our race have been filled up with incidents which con- 
vey no instruction." 

Each of the series from Scripture has parts beginning with the correlative words, though — 
yet, understood ; and the last sentence has parts beginning with the correlative words, therefore 
—for or because, understood. If supplied, as they might be without impropriety, and often 
are, (as we shall hereafter see,) the sense would be manifestly imperfect ; inasmuch as though, 
in the one case, and therefore, in tbe olfter, would suggest the other correlative words respect- 
ively, as yet to come. But their influence upon the sense and delivery is the same being 
understood, as if they were expressed. At the same time, their suppression requires a longer 
pause ; and since we have none bearing the same relation to the comma, that is borne by the 
colon to the semicolon, the last must be employed, though it is thus really diverted from its 
proper use. 

Note. If the comma is the proper punctuation between the parts, because the sense is 
imperfect at that point, the same pause is, of course, for the same reason, the proper interme- 
diate punctuation of the first part. (See however 1st law of Deviation as above.) The second 
part of a single compact, if it should have the structure of a simple sentence or of a compound 
close, must be intermediately punctuated in the same manner : if it should have the structure 
of a loose, (see definition of loose sentence below,) it should be punctuated as a loose. 

I should add, that either part of a single compact sentence may be itself a single compact 
sentence, consisting of two parts complete ; and cases are not wanting in which these subor- 
dinate compacts may be still farther compact. The punctuation of each compact, however, 
whether principal or subordinate, is the same. (See Mixed Sentence at the end of this Classi- 
fication.) 

2. The double compact, as the name implies, consists of two 
single compacts united : making one compact with four parts. The 
correlative words in each of the single compacts are therefore — -for, 
because. 

Of the double compact, there are two species ; the affirmative 
and negative : the former so called, because the first of its parts 
always contains an affirmative proposition : and the latter, because 
the first of its parts always contains a negative proposition. 

As the affirmative double compact may be resolved into the sin- 
gle compact, and presents no marked peculiarities, I shall take no 
farther notice of it. 

The negative is an extraordinary sentence : extraordinary alike 
for the frequency of its occurrence, the singular changes and modi- 
fications to which it is subject, and its magnificent oratorical capa- 
city. Some of the sublimest thoughts that ever issued from human 
lips have adopted the structure of this sentence for their expression. 
It was the favorite sentence of Demosthenes. 



76 CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 

This sentence, if entire, consists, as I have already said, of two 
single compacts, having each of them therefore in the first part, and 
for or because in the second. In the first of these single compacts, 
the'' part beginning with therefore contains a negative proposition : 
that which follows and begins with because, an affirmative or nega- 
tive proposition which assigns a reason for the preceding negative. 
In the second of these single compacts, the part beginning with 
therefore, contains an affirmative proposition in opposition or con- 
trast with the negative or first proposition in the preceding sen- 
tence ; and that which follows, beginning with because, assigns a 
reason for this affirmative : e. g. 

Swear not by heaven, for it is God's throne ; but let your com- 
munication be yea, yea, and nay, nay ; for whatsoever is more than 
these, cometh of evil. 

Or thus : 

Therefore swear not by heaven, because it is God's throne ; but 
therefore let your communication be yea, yea, and nay, nay ; because 
whatsoever is more than these, cometh of evil. (See Examples of 
the Double Compact beloiv.) 

Note. Therefore is never expressed at the beginning of the third part after but. 

Punctuation. Whatever the combination of the parts, the proper 
pause between the first two, or between the two, if two only are 
employed, or between the members of the first, if the first only is 
employed, is the comma. The reason of this is that the first part 
always makes imperfect sense. (But see exceptions under single 
compact ; which apply here.) 

The punctuation between the second and third part, if three parts 
are employed, is that of the semicolon or colon : the second con- 
cluding with perfect sense. 

The pause between the third and fourth part, is the semicolon or 
colon, according as the connective is expressed or understood. 

Separately considered, the parts may be either simple or com- 
pound ; close, compact, or, with the exception of the first, loose : 
the first always and necessarily makes imperfect sense. Their 
punctuation, respectively, will therefore conform to the nature of 
the sentence. 

III. The Loose sentence is one which contains two or more dis- 
tinct, though related, propositions, connected by conjunctions, ad- 
verbs, or relative pronouns expressed or understood. (See examples 
of the loose below : perfect and imperfect?) 

There are two species of the loose sentence : the perfect and im- 
perfect. 

1. The perfect has all its parts complete. 



CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 77 

2. The imperfect has its first parts complete, but the succeeding 
part or parts are fragmentary : requiring a portion of the first part, 
(which is understood,) to complete their construction. 

Punctuation. For this, I refer the student to Ch. II, Semicolon 
and Colon; and also to Deviations from Proper Punctuation, II ; 
the whole of which describes exclusively the ^punctuation of the 
perfect and imperfect loose sentence. (See Plate, fig. 11, a. b. c.) 



GENERAL NOTE ON THE DIFFERENT SPECIES OF COMPOUND SENTENCES. 

Though these sentences, in their pure state, are broadly distinct, as their respective definitions 
imply and the examples subjoined prove, yet, as might be expected, they frequently approxi- 
mate in a degree to render it doubtful whether we should regard them as belonging to one 
species or another. Thus, single compact sentences of the third form and third variety of that 
form, are not strikingly different from some close sentences ; and yet, if we examine the first 
with care, they are readily distinguished by universally involving correlative words, and, in the 
main, by having a different (not common) regimen in the parts, e. g. 

The recollection of this event swells every heart with joy, and 
fills every tongue with praise. 

Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all 
these things shall be added unto you. 

The first of these sentences is a close, the second is a single compact with the correlatives 
if — then understood. (See a description of 3d variety of Single Contp. 3d form, below.) 

Again, single compact sentences of the second form, (that is, compact sentences having only 
one of the correlative words expressed,) and perfect loose, in consequence of the fact that the 
same connectives are common to both, and still more of the fact that some writers are not 
sufficiently attentive to unequivocal construction, often approximate in the same manner ; and 
when they do, the sense only of a given sentence or its connection, can determine to which it 
should be referred, e. g. 

The person he chanced to see, was, to appearance, an old, sordid, 
blind man v ; but upon his following him from place to place, he at 
last found, by his own confession, that he was Plutus, the god of 
riches. 

It is the highest and most strenuous action of the soul w ; but an 
entirely harmonious action in which all our powers and affections 
are blended in a beautiful proportion, and sustain and perfect one 
another. 

I know not what course others may take 7 , but as for me, give me 
liberty, or give me death. 

The first of these sentences is perfect loose, and demands partial close on man ; i. e. a fall ol 
the voice at that point of the sentence indicating complete sense : the second is equivocal, and 
may receive the bend at soul, as if a single compact, or partial close, as if a perfect loose : the 
third is incontestably a single compact, and must, as such, receive the bend on take. The 
correlatives are indeed — but. , 

The single compact of the second form with the correlatives just mentioned, ( indeed — but.) 
when the first part contains a negative, like the last example above, is sometimes in dange; 
of being mistaken for a double compact with the first and third parts only expressed. (See 
examples, below, of Double Comp. No. 5.) But it may always be distinguished from the double 
compact of this combination of the parts, by observing that its first part contains a concession, 
while the double contains in its first simply a denial of a given proposition. Still farther, the 
two parts of the double compact, are directly opposed to each other : the two parts of the single 
compact are not. 

7* 



78 CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 

Finally, the compound close and imperfect loose often so nearly resemble each other, that 
the reader is left to determine which construction should be preferred, in a given case, by a 
regard to delivery ; that is to say, by considering which will produce the superior oratorical 
effect. 

I can hear whatever happens with manlike magnanimity'' ; can be 
contented and fully happy in the good which I possess'' ; and can 
pass through this turbid, this fickle, this fleeting period, without 
bewailings or envyings or murmurings or complaints. 

This sentence may be treated either as a close with a series at the end, and be delivered with 
the bend ; or as an imperfect loose, and be delivered with partial and periect close. 

These occasional approximations of the different species, however, lead to no practical diffi- 
culties; for when it is once ascertained to which a given sentence should be referred by con- 
sulting the structure or the sense, or, when these afford no light, by considering which will 
produce the superior oratorical effect, the delivery is then settled ; since the delivery must 
conform to that of the species to which, by assignment, it belongs. 



CLASS I. COMPOUND DECLARATIVE SENTENCES. 

1. Examples of the Close. 

(See Definition of a compound, of a declarative, and of a close sentence.) 

Exercise and temperance strengthen the constitution. John, 
William and James have returned. He was half maddened by 
glorious or terrible illusions. The hour is coming, in which all that 
are in their graves, shall hear his voice, and come forth. This is the 
bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, 
and not die. He found what he sought. He that entereth in by 
the door, is the shepherd of the sheep. I cannot consent out of 
tenderness to the memory of the Gages, the Hutchinsons, the Gren- 
villes and Norths, the Dartmouths and Hillsboroughs, to cast a veil 
over the labors and the sacrifices of the Quincys, the Hancocks and 
the Warrens. 

2. Examples of the Compact. 

1 . Of the Single Compact. 

(See Definition of a single compact.) 

1st form : both the correlative words expressed. 

Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him. So to see thy glory, 
as I have seen thee in the sanctuary. As in Adam all die, so in 
Christ shall all be made alive. Where the carcass is, there will 
the eagles be gathered together. When the Son of man shall 
come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he 
sit on the throne of his glory. If you know that the object is good, 
then seek it. Better is a dinner of herbs where love is, than a 
stalled ox and hatred therewith. 

2d form : only one of the correlative words expressed. 



CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 79 

I writ, because it amused me. I published, because I was told 
I might please. Whither I go, ye cannot come. If they hear not 
Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one 
rose from the dead. As they have won an honorable station among 
independent states, it becomes our imperative duty to treat them 
as such. 

The pupil should be required to state what the suppressed correlative is, and where in the 
sentence it belongs. 

3d form : neither of the correlative words expressed. 
This Form has five varieties. 

1. The first does not differ from the 1st and 2d form of the single compact, except in having 
both of the correlatives understood, and in having the verb in the first or second part, (as may 
be seen in the examples which follow,) transposed. 

2. The second uniformly begins with so called present and perfect participles. I say, so 
called, because these participles really have no time of their own, but being essentially substi- 
tutes for the verb, they assume the time of the verb for which they stand. To ascertain their 
time it is only necessaiy to convert them into the tense of the verb required by the sense. (See 
u Course of Reading" p. 26.) 

3. The third variety has parts apparently making perfect sense ; which is a leading charac- 
teristic of a loose sentence ; but it is distinguished from the loose by implying and nearly 
always clearly implying, correlative terms in the parts. It is distinguished from the other 
varieties by the insertion of and between the parts instead of the second correlative. Some- 
times the second correlative is associated with and ; as may be seen in the examples which 
follow. j 

4. The fourth variety begins with or includes the nominative case independent. 

5. The fifth variety begins with or includes an infinitive independent, preceded by the phrase, 
in order, expressed or understood. What is meant by an infinitive, (I use this term as others 
used it : see " Course of Reading," p. 29,) will, I trust, be sufficiently obvious in the examples 
adduced below. 

1st Variety. 
Had he assisted me, I would have done it. Should he go, I will 
attend him. A professed Catholic, he imprisoned the pope. A 
pretended patriot, he impoverished his country. Were it not for 
the impediments I speak of, I would pursue the course you have 
pointed out. I should feel ashamed of an enthusiasm for Italy and 
Greece, did I not feel it for a land like this. 

The pupil should state the correlative words understood in each of the examples of this 
and of eveiy succeeding variety. 

2d Variety. 

Being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our 
Lord Jesus Christ. Having given this account of the constitution 
of the everlasting club, I should here endeavor to say something 
of the manners and characters of the several members. Affected 
by this spectacle of suffering, he proffered relief. Highly elated by 
his unexpected good fortune, he returned home. Saving carefully 
the fruits of his labor, he at length was able to purchase a farm. 

Being justified ; i. e. when we are justified — then we have, &c. Having given ; i. e. as we 
have— so I should, &c. 

3d Variety. 

Seek, and ye shall find. I was hungry, and ye gave me no 

meat. The rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds 



80 CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 

blew, and beat upon that house ; and it fell. I have given five 
times as much as he, and yet I fear I have not given enough. The 
idea of God, it is said, may be expunged from the heart of man, 
and yet that heart wiU be the seat, still, of the same constitu- 
tional impulses as ever. He could not do as he wished, and so he 
would do nothing. Let him see that something is to be gained by 
study, and then he will apply himself to books. 

Seek ; i. e. if ye seek — then ye shall, &c. I was hungry ; i. e. though I was — yet ye gave, &c. 

4th Variety. 
This melancholy event having occurred, he felt unable to remain 
in that neighborhood, and emigrated to the state of Ohio. Such 
being the case, there is of course an end to argument. His friend 
being much touched, even to tears, at this, with a most affectionate 
look he said, Keep those tears for thyself. 

This melancholy ; i. e. when this melancholy event had, &c. — then he felt, &c. 

oth Variety. 

In order to succeed in their enterprises, it is necessary that they 
should put on, at least, the appearance of virtue. In order to over- 
come these difficulties, he had recourse to all the most subtle arts 
of the courtiers of that period. To deny this, he must forfeit every 
claim to the title of an honest man. In order to make a suitable 
provision for his family, he must lie awake many a long night, and 
labor hard many a long day. 

In order that men, &c. ; i. e. if or when men, &c. — then it is necessary, &c. 

2. Of the Double Compact. 

(See Definition of a double compact.) 

Of double compact with all the parts. 

Swear not by heaven, for it is God's throne ; but let your com- 
munication be yea, yea ; and nay, nay ; for whatsoever is more than 
these, cometh of evil. 

It was not an eclipse that caused the darkness at the crucifixion 
of our Lord ; for the sun and moon were not relatively in a posi- 
tion to produce an eclipse ; but a direct interposition of God ; for 
on no other supposition can we account for it. 

These are the only double compacts I have been able to find, having all the parts expressed ; 
and the first of these is in part constracted out of materials afforded by Matth. v. Three of 
the four parts which legitimately belong to this sentence, are as many as are commonly used 
at the same time : more frequently not more than two of them are employed, and sometimes 
one alone. I subjoin examples of the different combinations in which they appear. 

1. The fourth part is sometimes omitted : e. g. 

They had not come in search of gain, for the soil was sterile and 



CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 81 

unproductive ; but they had come that they might worship God 
according to the dictates of their consciences. 

It was not enough that our fathers were of England ; the mas- 
ters of Ireland and the lords of Hindostan were of England too ; 
but our fathers were Englishmen, aggrieved, persecuted and ban- 
ished. 

2. The third and fourth part are sometimes omitted : e. g. 

We must not impute the delay to indifference, for delay may be 
designed to promote our happiness. 

We dare not make ourselves of the number, or compare ourselves 
with some that commend themselves, for they, measuring them- 
selves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, 
are not wise. 

Not all the chapters of human history are thus important ; the 
annals of our race have been filled up with incidents which convey 
no instruction. 

3. When the negative or first part contains several members,* 
the second, third and fourth are sometimes omitted : e. g. 

[And what is our country ?] It is not the East with her hills 
and valleys, with her countless sails, and the rocky rampart of her 
shores ; it is not the North with her thousand villages, and her har- 
vest-home, with her frontier of the lake and ocean ; it is not the 
West with her forest sea and her inland isles, with her luxuriant 
expanses, clothed in the verdant corn, with her beautiful Ohio and 
her majestic Missouri ; nor is it yet the South, opulent in the 
mimic snow of the cotton, in the rich plantation of the rustling- 
cane, and the golden robes of the rice-field. 

4. The second only is sometimes omitted : e. g. 

Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should 
obey it in the lusts thereof ; neither yield ye your members as in- 
struments of unrighteousness unto sin ; but yield yourselves unto 
God as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as 
instruments of righteousness unto God ; for sin shall not have do- 
minion over you. 

5. The second and fourth are generally omitted ; and the nega- 
tive and affirmative, or the first and third proposition, are brought 
into immediate contrast : e. g. 

I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. Labor not for the meat 
that perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting 
life. Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that 
proceedeth out of the mouth of God. 

* With only one member, the second, third and fourth are omitted in colloquial writings. 



82 CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 

It is not his power, as attested by all that exists within the lii 
its of actual discovery, but his power, as conceived to form a: 
uphold a universe whose outskirts are unknown. 

We do not recognise in her the Christian, who has attained to t) 
perfect liberty of God's children, but the exact type of those soul 
at all times numerous, and especially among her sex,' who, dra^ 
powerfully to look to heaven, have not strength sufficient to disei 
gage themselves entirely from the bondage of earth. 

For a criterion to distinguish this combination of the parts of a double compact from tl 
single compact second form with the correlatives indeed — but, see above, General Note on tl 
different species of compound sentences. 

6. Occasionally, when the first and third parts are thus in imme 
diate contrast, they are transposed : e. g. 

You was paid to fight against Alexander ; not to rail at him. 
They were asleep ; not alienated. 

7. Finally, the negative is occasionally inserted as a clause in the 
affirmative : e. g. 

His wisdom, not his talents, attracts attention. Intrinsic worth, 
and not riches, procures esteem. Strong proofs, not a loud voice, 
produce conviction. Ambition, and not the safety of the state, was 
concerned. 

The copulative and, which occurs in one or two of these examples, is here equivalent to 
but, and elegantly used for it. 

It should be observed, before leaving the double compact sen- 
tence, that the negative is sometimes reduced to a single word : e. g. 

Nay, but it's really true : 
I had it from good hands, and so may you. 

(See Simple Declarative, Yes, iVo.) 



GENERAL NOTE ON THE DIFFERENT COMBINATIONS OF DOUBLE 

COMPACT. 

Between the first and the succeeding parts, especially when the first consists of several 
members, no or nay is often introduced as a summary and equivalent expression of the for- 
mer : and occasionally when so introduced, it is immediately followed by the sentence which, 
in conformity with what I have said on a preceding page, it represents. (See Simple Declara- 
tive, Remarks on Yes and JVo.) I subjoin an example of each case. They are worthy of 
careful observation in view of delivery. The first is an example of the use of no alone : the 
second, of no and the sentence it represents together. 

No wars have ravaged these lands and depopulated these villa- 
ges ; no civil discords have been felt ; no disputed succession ; no 
religious rage; no merciless enemy; no affliction of Providence, 
which, while it scourged for the moment, cut off the sources of 
resuscitation ; no voracious and poisonous monsters ; no ; all this 
has been accomplished by the friendship, generosity and kindness 
of the English nation. 



CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 83 

No effeminate nobility crowded into the dark and austere ranks 
of the pilgrims ; no Carr nor Villiers would lead on the ill-provided 
band of the despised Puritans ; no well-endowed clergy were on 
the alert to quit their cathedrals, ancL set up a pompous hierarchy 
in the frozen t wilderness ; no craving governors were anxious to be 
sent over to our cheerless El Dorados of ice and of snow ; no ; they 
could not say they had encourged, patronized or helped the pil- 
grims : their own cares, their own labors, their own counsels, their 
own blood, contrived all, achieved all, bore all, sealed all. 

When no or nay is thus introduced, it should be regarded and treated precisely as if it be- 
gan the sentence like nay in the last example under No. 7 above. 

3. Examples of the Loose. 

(See Definition of a loose sentence.) 

1. Of the Perfect Loose. 

Christians, familiar with the principles of justice, desire to see 
them adhered to in proceedings against others or themselves ; but 
those who, are accustomed to act according to their own will, are 
much surprised when required to proceed regularly and agreeably 
to form and law. Let your moderation be known unto all men : 
the Lord is at hand. The first man is of the earth, earthy : the 
second man is the Lord from heaven. 

2. Of the Imperfect Loose. 

History, as it has been written, is the genealogy of princes : the 
field-book of conquerors. The law is not made for a righteous 
man, but for the lawless and disobedient ; for the unholy and pro- 
fane ; for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers ; for man- 
slayers ; for whoremongers ; for them that defile themselves with 
mankind; for manstealers ; for liars; for perjured persons; and if 
there be any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine. 



CLASS II. COMPOUND INTERROGATIVE SENTENCES. 
(See Definition of a compound sentence, and also the Definition of an interrogative.) 

Compound interrogative sentences, besides being, like simple in- 
terrogatives, definite, indefinite and indirect, are also double and 
semi-interrogative. 

The double interrogative consists of two parts united by the dis- 
junctive conjunction or. The second of these is often much abbre- 
viated ; and both the first and second, considered independently of 
each other, may have either a close, compact or loose construction. 



84 CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 

Strictly speaking, the double interrogative is a declarative single compact sentence, with the 
correlative words, whether — or : the former nearly always understood. I say nearly always, 
because I have met with a few exceptions. The following are examples: "Whether is it 
easier to say to the sick of the palsy, Thy sins be forgiven thee ? or to say, Arise, and take up 
thy bed, and walk " " Whether is he the author of the flame, who lays down the fuel ; or 
who applies the torch " Of course, the interrogation between its parts, properly represents 
the comma; though it may, in view of allowable deviations, represent the semicolon. (See 
Examples below.) « 

The semi- interrogative is distinguished from all other interroga- 
tes, by being in part declarative or declarative exclamatory. 
The interrogative portion may be either definite, indefinite, indi- 
rect or double ; and both the interrogative and the declarative or 
declarative exclamatory, may be either simple or compound : if 
compound, either close, compact or loose. Besides this variety 
of construction of each separately considered, the interrogative, 
and the declarative or exclamatory portion, form together, rela- 
tively to one another, either a close, compact, or loose sentence. 
(See Examples below.) They are punctuated like the sentences 
which, independently or relatively, they form. 



1. THE DEFINITE INTERROGATIVE. 
(See Definition of a Definite Interrogative, Simple sentences, Class H. 1.) 

1 . Examples of the Close. 
Are John and James residing at home this summer ? Is not 
virtue rewarded and vice punished ? Is it true, that the woman 
died of mere joy, on being told that her long-lost child had been 
discovered ? Do you think it wise or humane, at this moment, to 
insult them by sticking up in the pillory the man who dared to 
stand forth their advocate ? Do you think that a blessing of that 
kind, that a victory, obtained by justice over bigotry and oppres- 
sion, should have a stigma cast upon it, by an ignominious sentence 
upon men, bold and honest enough to propose that measure? 
Has he not himself, have not all the martyrs after him, poured 
forth their blood in the conflict ? 

2. Examples of the Single Compact. 

The examples are confined to the illustration of single compacts. Though I have looked 
diligently for a double compact, I have hitherto been unable to find one. The nature of a 
double compact seems to be incompatible with interrogation. At most, I have found and 
that rarely, a mixture of this sentence with the predominance of some other species in the 
same question. 

Almost all compacts purely interrogative, appear with the correlative words and parts 
reversed. With the parts in the natural order, they would cease to be purely interrogative, 
and become semi-interrogative. 

1st form : with both correlative words expressed. 

Is it then a time to remove foundations, when the earth itself is 
shaken ? Is eloquence therefore less excellent in itself, because it 
has been abused ? Is he so seriously ill, in consequence of the acci- 
dent which occurred the other day, that he cannot leave his room ? 



CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 85 

2d form : with one of the correlative words expressed. 

Is this a time to forfeit the protection of God, when the hearts 
of men are failing them for fear ? Is it because foreigners are in 
a condition to set our malice at defiance, that we are willing to con- 
tract engagements of friendship ? Must we remain here, while he is 
absent on this expedition ? Shall we proceed, though the expected 
aid should not arrive ? Am I to forgive, if he will not repent ? 

3d form : with neither of the correlative words expressed. 

Could you succeed, had you the means of which you speak ? 
Would you perform a benevolent action, did you not know that 
others would see and applaud it ? Can you insult a man, unable, 
by reason of his physical infirmities, to avenge himself? Should 
we oppress a man, already driven to despair, by the miseries of 
those who are depending on him for support ? Did he die, still 
hoping for pardon ? 

3. Examples of the Loose. 

The loose interrogative, and the loose interrogative exclamation, of the different species, 
have the interrogation and exclamation point sometimes inserted between the parts, and 
sometimes only at the end : the semicolon and colon taking their place. The student should 
bear this in mind ; that, when he meets with a loose sentence having the interrogation or 
exclamation point between the parts, he may not mistake such parts for independent sen- 
tences. In this work, when the interrogation or exclamation point is thus inserted, he will 
be kept from error by observing that the first letter succeeding it, is not a capital. This is 
the manner, I conceive, in which the loose interrogative, or loose interrogative exclamatory, 
should always be printed ; and this is the manner of the older works. The modern practice, 
however, at least on this side of the Atlantic, is almost uniform in neglecting it. 

1. Of the Perfect Loose. 

Had not the shepherd made them to lie down in green pastures ; 
had he not led them beside the still waters ; restored he not their 
souls ; did he not lead them, for his own name sake, in paths of 
righteousness ; and was he not with them, still keeping them from 
evil? 

Have the gates of death been opened unto thee ? or hast thou 
seen the doors of the shadow of death ? Canst thou bring forth 
Mazzaroth in his season ? or canst thou guide Arcturus with his 
sons? 

Are we formed with a passionate longing for immortality, and 
yet destined to perish after this short period of existence ? are we 
prompted to the noblest actions, and supported through life under 
the severest hardships, and the most delicate temptations, by the 
hope of a reward which is visionary and chimerical ? 

2. Of tlte Imperfect Loose. 
Do we never meet with the charity which melts at suffering : 
with the honesty which disdains, and is proudly superior to false- 

8 



86 CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 

hood : with the active beneficence which gives to others its time 
and its labor : with the modesty which shrinks from notice, and 
gives all its sweetness to retirement : with the gentleness which 
breathes peace to all, and throws a beautiful lustre over the 
walks of domestic society ? 

Knowest thou it because thou wast then born ? or because the 
number of thy days is great. 



2. THE INDEFINITE INTERROGATIVE. 
(See Definition of Indefinite Interrogative, Simple sentences, Class II. 2.) 

1 . Examples of the Close. 

Where is the man whose moral courage is equal to the task of 
rising and pleading this cause against this host of the licentious and 
profane ? When did patriotism attempt or moral courage achieve 
a more signal victory ? Whose house is that which I perceive on 
the hill yonder ? Who does not feel, Avhat reflective American 
does not acknowledge, the incalculable advantage, derived to this 
land, out of the foundations of civil, intellectual and moral truth, 
from which we have drawn in England S. 

Examples of Fragmentary Close. 
The man and woman, with her child ? What virtues and vices ? 

The context of the first example implies " What became of" at the beginning ; and of the 
second, " approximate in the way you mention ;" i. e. certain virtues to vices : certain vices to 
virtues. 

2. Examples of the Single Compact* 
1st form : with both of the correlative words expressed. 
What is so calculated to impress them with the importance of 
prayer, as the being called at stated intervals to take part in our 
devotional supplications to God ? Who can tell how often there the 
waves of barbarous migrations may have broken harmless against the 
cliffs, where nature was the strong ally of the defenders of the 
land? 

2d form : with one of the correlative words expressed. 

Why should I question his veracity, when he assured me that 
this man had never done an act of beneficence in his life ? When 
can you hope for such another, if this be neglected V To what 
shall we impute the misfortunes that have overtaken and over- 
whelmed the country within the last five years, if not to an officious, 

* The double not found. 



CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 87 

arbitrary, tyrannical meddling with the natural currents and laws 
of trade ? 

3d form : with neither of the correlative words expressed. 

Who would not have committed the same crime, had he been 
exposed to the same temptation ? What would be the result, 
were he to fail in the very outset of the enterprise ? 

The indefinite compact is often made fragmentary, by the suppression of all of the first part 
except the interrogative what, thus: What, if he did ? What, though he fled 5 1 What, when 
you met him ? (See Ch. VI. Ride XIV. Note at the end of examples.) 

3. Examples of the Loose. 

1. Of the Perfect Loose. 

By what authority doest thou these things ; or who gave thee 
this authority ? When shall these things be ? and what sign shall 
there be, when these things come to pass ? Where is now that 
splendor of the most exalted dignities ? where are those marks of 
honor and distinction ? what has become of that pomp of feast- 
ings and rejoicings ? what is the issue of those frequent acclama- 
tions, and extravagantly flattering encomiums, lavished by a whole 
people assembled in the circus to see the public shows ? 

2. Of the Imperfect Loose. 

Where is her splendor : her wealth : her power : her glory ? 
To whom do we owe it, that in this favored land the gospel of the 
blessed God has best displayed its power to bless humanity, by 
uniting the anticipations of a better world with the highest inter- 
ests and pursuits of this : by carrying its merciful influence into 
the very business and bosoms of men : by making the ignorant 
wise, and the miserable happy : by breaking the fetters of the 
slave, and teaching the " babe and the suckling" those simple and 
sublime truths which give life its dignity and virtue, and fill im- 
mortality with hope ? 



3. THE INDIRECT INTERROGATIVE. 
(See Definition of Indirect Interrogative, Simple sentences, Class II. 3.) 

These sentences, like other compounds, are close, compact and 
loose ; but as they seldom occur, I shall content myself with giv- 
ing examples without reference to these divisions : trusting that 
the student is well enough acquainted, at this stage, with their dis- 
tinctive features, to recognise them, whenever they appear. 



88 CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 

1. Examples of the first hind. 

You do not think, I hope, that I will join in conversation with such 
a man ; or that T will so far betray my character, as to give coun- 
tenance to such desperate proceedings f 

This sentence is, alone, an illustration of close, compact and loose. As a whole, it is imper- 
fect loose : having in the first part a close, and in the second, a compact construction. 

2. Examples of the second kind. 

And it came to pass, when he was in a certain city, behold a 
man full of leprosy ; who, seeing Jesus, fell on his face and be- 
sought him : saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean f 
And he put forth his hand and touched him : saying, I will : be 
thou clean. 

I quote no more of this sentence, as example, than the question it contains: the question of 
the leper. 

3. Examples of the third kind. 

You surely will not say, I am bound to read such books f 
Truth, Lord, yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their 
master's table ? Sure he that made us, made us to enjoy ? 



4. THE DOUBLE INTERROGATIVE. 
(See Definition of a Double Interrogative.) 

Examples. 

Is it lawful to give tribute unto Caesar, or not 9 Art thou he 
that should come, or do we look for another 9 Is it lawful on the 
Sabbath day to do good, or to do evil ? to save life, or to destroy 
it 9 Has God forsaken the works of his own hands, or does he 
always graciously preserve and keep and guide them 9 

5. THE SEMI-INTERROGATIVE. 
(See Definition of a Semi-interrogative sentence.) 

Examples. 

He approached the man and said, what place is this ? And he 
turned unto the woman and said unto Simon, Seest thou this 
woman ? 

If you reasoned aright, and probed the soul well, would you not 
find that from these, as from hidden springs, a great deal of all the 
best felicity, you have tasted, has welled up ? 



CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 89 

Beasts of burden may easily be managed by a new master, but 
will the wild ass submit to bonds ? 

In such a state, eloquence, it is obvious, would be most studied 
as the surest means of rising to influence and power ; and what 
sort of eloquence V 

To you the world is in its prime : why should you anticipate its 
decay V 

The baptism of John : was it from heaven, or of men 9 

Then said Jesus unto them, I will ask you one thing : is it lawful 
on the Sabbath-day to do good, or to do evil 9 to save life, or to 
destroy it V 

During the conversation he was silent ; but I heard him, as he 
went out, saying to a man with whom he was walking, And so he 
died without making, after all, a confession of his many crimes f 

He who maims my person, affects that which medicine may rem- 
edy ; but what herb has sovereignty over the wound of slander ? 
he who ridicules my poverty or reproaches my profession, upbraids 
me with that which industry may retrieve, and integrity may rec- 
tify ; but what riches shall redeem the bankrupt fame ? 

The two Semi-interrogatives in the last example, taken together, may be called a loose semi- 
interrogative. (See definition of a loose sentence.) 



CLASS III. COMPOUND EXCLAMATORY SENTENCES. 
(See Definition of a compound sentence, and also of an exclamatory sentence.) 

Compound exclamatory sentences are declarative, interrogative, 
compilative and semi-exclamatory : the last so called, because only 
in part exclamatory. 

Compound compellatives differ in nothing from the simple, ex- 
cept in comprising two or more names connected by copulatives 
expressed or understood, or either one or two, followed by an ad- 
junct or rather circumstance, also connected by a copulative ex- 
pressed or understood. As the compellatives necessarily make 
imperfect sense, they must always be separated from what follows 
by the comma : if followed by a circumstance, that too, making 
imperfect sense, must be separated from the succeeding part of the 
sentence by the comma. 

Almost every species of exclamatory sentences appears in a 
fragmentary form. 

1. THE DECLARATIVE EXCLAMATORY. 
(See Definition of a declarative sentence, and also of an exclamatory sentence.) 

1. Examples of the Close. 
Shame and death to the enemies of the Queen and State ! Wo 
to those who in disgust shall venture to crush her ! There goes 



90 CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 

one who belonged to the army of Italy ! God forbid that my 
happiness should be bought at such a price ! The next gale that 
sweeps from the north, will bring to our ears the clash of resound- 
ing arms ! Would that the principle of that faith which we have 
believed, and which we prize, were also hers ! 

That they should have attempted to pass the grand, yet solid 
and judicious operations of a mind like his, as being the mere 
theatrical start and emotion, the giddy, hair-brained eccentricities 
of a romantic boy ; that they should have had the presumption to 
suppose themselves capable of chaining down to the floor of par- 
liament, a genius so ethereal, towering and sublime, seems unac- 
countable ! 

Examples of Fragmentary Close. 

Washington and Hamilton in five years ! One million of men 
torn from their homes, butchered in battle, and left to rot and 
bleach where they fell, to gratify the ambition of a despot ! That 
those who have been rocked in the same cradle by the same ma- 
ternal hand, and imbibed the first genial nourishment of infant ex- 
istence from the same blessed source, should be forced to contend 
in impious strife for the destruction of that being, derived from their 
common parents ! 

[He launched forth upon the unknown deep, to discover a new 
world under the patronage of Ferdinand and Isabella.] The pat- 
ronage of Ferdinand and Isabella ! [Let us dwell for a moment on 
the auspices under which our country was brought to light.] The 
patronage of Ferdinand and Isabella ! [Yes, doubtless, they have 
fitted out a convoy, worthy the noble temper of the man, and the 
gallantry of the object.] 

2. Examples of the Compact. 
1. Of the Single Compact. 
1st form: with both of the correlative words expressed. 
When at length we meet again, before the blessed tribunal of 
that Deity whose mild doctrines, and whose mercies, ye have this 
day renounced ; then shall you feel the agony and grief of soul, 
which now tear the bosom of your weak accuser ! 

Then if you see my limbs convulsed, my teeth clenched, my hair 
bristling, and cold dews trembling on my brow ; seize me ! 

2d form : with one of the correlative words expressed. 

Troy thought so once, yet the land of Priam lives only in song ! 
— The believers in Christianity are many, but it belongs to the few 
that are wise to correct their credulity ! 



CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 91 

[Oh God !] if thou art still the widow's husband, and the father 
of the fatherless, pity, pity this afflicted mother, and grant that 
her hapless orphans may find a friend, a benefactor, a father in thee ! 

While led by thy hand, and fighting under thy banners ; open 
thou their eyes to behold in every valley and in every plain, what 
the prophets beheld by the same illumination: chariots of fire, 
and horses of fire ! 

3d form : with neither of the correlative words expressed. 

Happy would it have been for her and all, had my first counsels 
prevailed ! — Happy were it for us, did we constantly view the great 
Creator and Preserver of all, continually manifesting himself in his 
various works ! 

Could we approach thee, gladly would we drop the tear of 
sympathy, and pour into thy bleeding bosom the balm of con- 
solation ! 

You have vanquished him in the field ; strive now to rival him 
in the sacred arts of peace ! 

You will never think as I do, and I will never think as you do ! 
Stain my riband blue, cries the illustrious knight, and the fountain 
of honor will have a fast and faithful servant ! 

Flung into life in the midst of a revolution that quickened every 
energy of a people who acknowledge no superior, he commenced 
his course a stranger by birth, and a scholar by charity ! 

Examples of Fragmentary Single Compact. 

Did you know the burning of this bosom ! — [but I speak un- 
thinkingly perhaps what my delicacy should not have whispered 
even in the ear of friendship !] 

Could we but prevail on my father to think thus ! [Alas, his 
mind is not formed for contracting into that narrow sphere, which 
his fortune has now marked out for him.] 

Had you seen him, Julia, when he pronounced this forever ! 

Had you seen her eyes, how they spoke, when her father gave 
me her hand ! 

Did you feel that name as I do ! — [Even traced with my pen, 
what throbbing remembrances has it raised !] 

Could I be with you ! — [but I shall not be forgotten at the in- 
terview !] 

When I think of the many thousands of my fellow-creatures 
groaning under oppression and misery !- — [Great God ! hast thou 
peopled those regions of thy world for the purpose of casting out 
their inhabitants to chains and torture ?] 

Admirable ! but upon this doctrine, the poor man who has but 
one single vice, must be in a bad way. 



92 CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 

Each of these exclamatory sentences, except the last, has its second part, beginning with, 
then understood. What that part may be, the student must surmise. 

The last example, which has the correlative word indeed suppressed, has the first part in a 
fragmentary state ; which is here, it will be observed, pointed as exclamatory. This is often 
the case with every species of exclamatory sentence. 1 make this remark once for all. 

To become familiar with these fragmentary forms, is of the highest importance to a correct 
delivery. They are frequently met with. 

2. Of the Double Compact. 

Surely victories and triumph do not give immortal glory to a city ! 
but the exercise of mercy towards a vanquished enemy, the using 
of moderation in the greatest prosperity, and fearing to offend God 
by a haughty and insolent pride ! 

It disturbed no innocent man ; it knew where its appearance 
would strike terror, and who would cry out, "A ghost!" it made 
itself visible in the right quarter, and compelled the guilty and the 
conscience-smitten, and none others, to start with, 

Pr'ythee, see there ! behold ! look ! Io ! 
If I stand here, I saw him ! 

He is not content to triumph over the Gauls, the Egyptians and 
Pharnaces ; he must triumph over his own countrymen ! He is not 
content to cause the statues of Scipio and Petrius to be carried before 
him ; he must be graced by that of Cato ! He is not content with 
the simple effigy of Cato ; he must exhibit that of his suicide ! He 
is not satisfied to insult the Romans by triumphing over the death 
of liberty ; they must gaze upon the representation of her expiring 
agonies, and mark the writhings of her last, fatal struggle ! 

They are not fighting ; (do not disturb them ;) they are merely 
pausing ! This man is not expiring with agony ; that man is not 
dead ; he is only pausing ! They are not angry with one another ; 
they have no cause of quarrel, but their country thinks that there 
should be a pause ! All that you see, sir, is nothing like fighting ; 
there is no harm, nor cruelty, nor bloodshed in it whatever ; it is 
nothing more than a political pause ! 

You would not select the political firebrand ; you would not seek 
your seconds in the tavern or in the brothel ; you would not in- 
quire out the man who was oppressed with debts, contracted by 
licentiousness, debauchery, every species of profligacy ! [who, sir, 
I ask, were Csesar's seconds in his undertakings ?] 

In the first of these examples, we have the first and third propositions in contact : in the 
second, the first, second and third: in the third, a series of double compacts, consisting of the 
first and third : the fourth differs from the third only in having the first proposition of most of 
the compacts consist of two or more members : the last consists^of the first proposition, only, with 
several members. 

3. Examples of the Loose. 

1. Of the Perfect Loose. 
Time flies : words are unavailing : the chieftains prepare for in- 
stant battle ! 



CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 93 

This is the consequence of your generosity : he whom your good- 
ness raised to an equality with your own children, is the murderer 
of your children ! 

May the disciples of Washington then see, as we now see, the 
flag of the Union floating on the top of the Capitol ; and then, as 
now, may the sun in his course visit no land more free, more happy, 
more lovely, than this our own country ! 

2. Of the Imperfect Loose. 

He aspired to be the highest ! above the people ! above the 
authorities ! above the laws ! above his country ! 

This is the way to fall, when one must fall ! to surrender, when 
one must surrender ! to die, when death comes ! 

Oh the insupportable anguish of reflecting that we died of hun- 
ger, when there was bread enough and to spare ! that we perished 
from thirst, when the waters of salvation were rolling at our very 
feet! 

It was the spirit of liberty which still abides on earth, and has 
its home in the bosoms of the brave : which but yesterday in beau- 
tiful France restored their violated charter : which even now burns 
brightly on the towers of Belgium, and has rescued Poland from 
the tyrant's grasp : making their sons, aye, and their daughters 
too, the wonder and the admiration of the world ; the pride and 
glory of the human race ! 

2. THE INTERROGATIVE EXCLAMATORY. 
(See Definition of an interrog. sent, and also of an exclamatory sentence.) 

1. THE DEFINITE INTERROGATIVE. 

(See Definition of a Definite Interrogative.) - 

1. Examples of the Close. 

Shall it be said that we will not sacrifice one prejudice on the 
altar of the Union for its preservation ! 

Was it a wonder, then, that I seized my prejudices, and, with a 
blush, burned them on the altar of my country ! 

[Is it come to this !] Shall an inferior magistrate, a governor 
who holds his power of the Roman people, in a Roman province, 
within sight of Italy, bind, scourge, torture with fire and red-hot 
plates of iron, and at last put to the infamous death of the cross, a 
Roman citizen ! 

Examples of Fragmentary Close. 
Of a friend who had saved his life ! [Incredible.] 



94 CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 

That God and nature have put into our hands ! 
Go from Boston to New York and thence to Philadelphia in two 
days! 

2. Examples of the Compact. 

I have not been able to find a double compact definite, and even single compacts are very 
scarce. Such as I have been able to collect will be found below, and inthe appropriate place 
in Chapter VI. 

1st form: with both correlative words expressed. 

Might Rome then have been taken, if these men, who were at 
our gates, had not wanted courage for the attempt ! 

Would it not be advisable rather to attend to this declared object 
of the war now, than wait until after the Canadian scheme is 
effected ! 

2d form : with one correlative word expressed. 

Will you charge me with a purpose to overthrow the government, 
because I oppose misrule ! 

Do you strike me like a dog, because I will not submit to oppres- 
sion ! 

Is tyranny of this kind to be borne with, where law is said to 
exist ! 

Do you propose to defeat the enemy, when at the gates ! 

3d form : with neither of the correlative words expressed. 

Could hope have ever visited your breasts, had Christ not suf- 
fered on the cross the vengeance of man and the wrath of God ! 

Would the enemies of the country dare to assail us, having made 
such ample preparations to repel them ! 

Could he do this, and I remain silent ! 

Victory, and I not there ! 

3. Examples of the Loose. 
1. Of the Perfect Loose. 

Was it not enough that sorrow robed the happy home in mourn- 
ing : was it not enough that disappointment preyed upon its loveliest 
prospects : was it not enough that its little inmates cried in vain for 
bread, and heard no answer but the poor father's sigh, and drank 
no sustenance but the wretched mother's tears : was this a time for 
passion, conscienceless, licentious passion, with its eye of lust, its 
heart of stone, its hand of rapine, to rush into the mournful sanc- 
tuary of misfortune, casting crime into the cup of wo, and rob the 
parents of their last wealth, their child, and rob the child of her 
only charm, her innocence ! 



CLASSIFICATION OP SENTENCES. 95 



Examples of Fragmentary Perfect Loose. 

To change the settled law of property ! to confiscate the widow's 
pittance ! to plunder the orphan's cradle ! and to violate the dead 
man's grave ! [For this, too, there was a precedent.] 

To turn forth into our settlements, among our ancient connec- 
tions, friends and relations, the merciless cannibal, thirsting for the 
blood of man, woman and child ! to send forth the infidel savage 
against your protestant brethren to lay waste their country, deso- 
late their dwellings and extirpate their race and name, with these 
horrible hell-hounds of savage war ! 

2. Of the Imperfect Loose. 

Are we brought into the world and allowed to occupy a place 
in it, only that we may pursue trifles ! that we may brutishly gratify 
our appetites and passions ! that we may leave the world at last, 
perhaps at the expiration of threescore years and ten, without 
having derived any advantage from being in it, or conferring a single 
benefit upon it I 

Fragmentary Imperfect Loose. 

What ! to attribute the sacred sanctions of God and nature to 
the massacres of the Indian scalping-knife ! to the cannibal savage, 
torturing, murdering, devouring, drinking the blood of his mangled 
victims ! 

[By what name shall I now address you ? Shall I call you sol- 
diers ?] Soldiers ! who have dared to besiege the son of your em- 
peror ! who have made him a prisoner in his own intrenchments ! 
[Can I call you citizens ?] Citizens ! who have trampled under 
your feet the authority of the senate ! who have violated the most 
awful sanctions, even those which hostile states have ever held in 
respect, the rights of ambassadors, and the laws of nations ! 

2. THE INDEFINITE INTERROGATIVE. 

(See Definition of the Indefinite Interrogative sent.) 

1. Examples of the Close. 

How easily do vigor of body and infirmity of mind lodge under 
the same roof ! 

What a multitude of this and that living host, now glorious in 
the blaze of arms, and burning with desires of conquest, will fall 
and perish ! 

How often do we see in our public gazettes, a pompous display 



96 CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 

of honors to the memory of some veteran patriot, who has been 
suffered to linger out his latter days in unregarded penury ! 

2. Examples of the Compact. 

I have not been able to find a double compact indefinite : consequently the examples below 
are confined to the single, as under the head of definite. 

1st form : with both correlative words expressed. 

Where then shall the poor longing for the improvement of their 
condition, the ignorant yearning to look with intelligence upon the 
fair page of knowledge, the oppressed sighing for liberty and the 
persecuted for rest, the poor, the ignorant, the oppressed and per- 
secuted of every clime, find an asylum, when young America, whose 
boast has been the largest liberty of conscience and exertion, closes 
the door against their approach, or allowing them to enter, places 
upon their limbs the very fetters from which they fled ! 

2d form : with one of the correlatives expressed. 

What momentous meaning hangs upon that word, first, when its 
peculiar relations in this connection are understood ! 

How many favorite schemes of enjoyment would the thought of 
him and his will put to flight, if faithfully admitted to the inner 
chambers of the mind ! 

3d form : with neither of the correlative words expressed 

How well would it have been, had he but retraced the fountain 
of that document ! 

How different would have been our lot this day, both as men 
and citizens, had the revolution failed of success ! 

What, what are the hours of a splendid wretch like this, com- 
pared with those that shed their poppies and their roses upon the 
pillows of our peaceful and virtuous patriots ! 

The only fragmentary form of the indefinite compact, of which 
I am at present aware, is the following : varied by the use of differ- 
ent correlative words, what, though ; what, then. 

[The success of the campaign depends upon the occurrence of 
no unfavorable contingency.] But what, if our supplies should be 
cut off ! 

" Then shall we dp," or something similar, is here understood after what. 

3. Examples of the Loose. 

1. Of the Perfect Loose. 
How striking the event ! how wide its influence ! how strange 
its effects! Who can deny that the existence of such a country 
presents a subject for human congratulation : who can deny that 



CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 97 

its gigantic advancement offers a field for the most rational con- 
jecture ! 

How few modern orators could venture on such apostrophes ; 
and what a power of genius would it require to give such figures 
now their proper grace, or make them produce a due effect on the 
hearers ! 

2. Of the Imperfect Loose. 

How precious must that liberty be, which could prompt a great 
people to suffer their native prince to wander in exile ! which 
could move them to resist every attempt to replace him on the 
throne ! 

What a spectacle was this, to see uncircumcised Philistines lay- 
ing their profane hands upon the testimony of God's presence ! to 
see the glorious mercy-seat under the roof of an idol ! to see the 
two cherubims spreading their wings under a false god ! 

Where in the compass of human literature, can the fancy be so 
elevated by sublime description : can the heart be so warmed by 
simple, unaffected tenderness ! 

3. THE INDIRECT INTERROGATIVE. 

(See Definition of the Indirect Interrogative sent.) 

1. Examples of the first Mnd. 

Thou dost not mean — 
No, no, thou wouldst not have me make 
A trial of my skill upon my child ! 

2. Examples of the second kind. 

Of this variety of the indirect, 1 have met with no examples. 

3. Examples of the third hind. 

[But how was it received by the American cabinet ?] Surely,, 
they were indignant at this treatment : surely the air rings with 
reproaches upon a man, who has thus made them stake their rep- 
utation upon a falsehood, and then gives little less than the lie 
direct to their assertions ! [No, sir : nothing of the kind.] 

3. THE COMPELLATIVE EXCLAMATORY. 
(See Definition of a Compellative exclamatory.) 

Examples. 
Men, brethren and fathers! — Friends and fellow-citizens! — 
Truth ! friendship ! my country ! [accept my last sacrifice.] Brin- 

9 



98 CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 

ces, potentates, and powers ! — Romans, countrymen, and lovers ! — 
Prescott, Putnam, Stark, Brooks, Read, Pomeroy, Bridge ! — [our 
eyes seek for you in vain amidst the broken band.] 

Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest 
them that are sent unto thee ! [how often would I have gathered, 
&c. &c] 

Ye who have hearts of pit}^ ! ye who have experienced the anguish 
of dissolving friendship ! who have wept and still weep over the 
moulderings of departed kindred ! — [ye can enter into this reflection.] 
thou great Arbiter of life and death i 
Nature's immortal, immaterial sun ! 
Whose all-prolific beam late called me forth 
From darkness, (teeming darkness, where I lay 
The worm's inferior, and in rank beneath 
The dust I tread on,) high to bear my brow, 
To drink the spirit of the golden day, 
And triumph in existence ; and could know 
No motive but my bliss ; and hast ordained 
A rise in blessing ! [with the patriot's joy 
Thy call I follow to the land unknown.] 



4. SEMI-EXCLAMATORY. 
(See Definition of Semi-interrogative.) 

Examples. 

And when he came to himself he said, how many hired servants 
of my father have enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger ! 

Oh God ! most merciful, most righteous Father of all mercies ! 
he cried in a transport of devotion, with what marvellous love hast 
thou embraced us : even us, thine enemies ! 

Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and 
stonest them that are sent unto thee, how often would I have 
gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chick- 
ens under her wings, and ye would not ! 

While he feels in himself nothing but frailty and weakness, how 
apt is he to apprehend some fatal overthrow ! 

If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your 
children, how much more shall your heavenly Father give the 
Holy Spirit to them that ask him ! 

Under such circumstances, a sensation of happiness for a single 
moment would be a cause of gratitude ; how much more, if this 
form of happiness continue throughout our whole extent of being ! 

He sacrificed every thing he had in the world : what could we 
ask more ! 



CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 99 

When a government forbids its citizens, under pain of death, to 
receive any pension or largess from the hands of foreigners, how 
gentle and easy is that law to those who, for the sake of their 
father-land and liberty, would, of their own accord, abstain from so 
unworthy an act ! but on the contrary, how harsh and oppressive 
does it appear to those, who care for nothing but their selfish gains ! 

These exclamatory sentences are, correctly speaking, wholly, instead of being serai exclam- 
atory. But it should be observed that they combine two different species of exclamatory 
sentences : the declarative and interrogative ; and that properly named, they would be called 
semi-interrogative exclamatory. This name, however, is so long and complex, that I preferred 
the shorter designation, though not quite accurate. 



THE MIXED SENTENCE, CIRCUMSTANCE AND PARENTHESIS. 

The preceding classification comprises, I believe, every variety 
of sentence to be found in the English language ; and, indeed, in 
any language, whether ancient or modern ; for in them all, the 
laws of construction, if we except an unimportant difference in the 
arrangement of words, are precisely the same. It now only re- 
mains to observe, that these sentences are not always found in a 
pure state. They are frequently combined ; and when combined, 
they are equally necessary to the sense and construction, or one or 
more of them are necessary to the sense, but not to the construction, 
or one or more of them are necessary neither to the sense nor con- 
struction. In the first case, I call the sentence a mixed sentence : 
in the second, the part or sentence not necessary to the construc- 
tion, I call, after Dr. Blair, a circumstance : in the third case, the 
part or sentence inserted, but necessary neither to the sense nor 
construction, I call a parenthesis. 

As the combinations, of course, somewhat modify the delivery, 
their peculiarities should be understood. I shall, therefore, before 
dismissing the classification of sentences, describe them : subjoining 
as hitherto a number of examples, sufficient for all the purposes of 
illustration. 

I. The mixed sentence is formed of two or more of the same 
species, or of different species of sentences, so combined, that both 
or all are equally necessary to the construction and the sense. 

Examples. 
It is happy that these governors into whose hands you have 
resigned your power, are so good, and so gracious, as to continue 
your allowance to see plays. 



100 CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 

It is the garment of vengeance with which the Deity arrays him- 
self, when he comes forth to punish the inhabitants of the earth. 

The counsel remarked that one of the letters should not be taken 
in evidence, because it was evidently and abstractedly private. 

It is all resolute, manly resistance for conscience and liberty's 
sake, not merely of an overwhelming power, but of all the force of 
long-rooted habits and native love of order and peace. 

If I were an American, as I am an Englishman, while a foreign 
troop remained in my country, I never would lay down my arms. 
I'm surprised at that ; 
Where I come from, it is the common chat. 

Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he 
prayed earnestly that it might not rain, and it rained not on the 
earth by the space of three years and six months. 

Why do you repeat my words, as if you feared to trust your own ? 

When my eyes shall be turned to behold, for the last time, the 
sun in heaven, may I not see him shining on the broken and dishon- 
ored fragments of a once glorious union ; on states dissevered, dis- 
cordant, belligerent ; on a land rent with civil feuds, or drenched, 
it may be, in fraternal blood ! let their last feeble and lingering 
glance, rather, behold the gorgeous ensign of the Republic, now 
known and honored throughout the earth, still full high advanced : 
its arms and trophies streaming in their original lustre : not a stripe 
erased or polluted, nor a single star obscured : bearing for its 
motto, no such miserable interrogatory as, What is all this worth ? 
nor those other words of delusion and folly, Liberty first and union 
afterward ; but everywhere, spread all over in characters of living 
light, blazing on all its ample folds as they float over the sea and 
over the land, and in every wind under the whole heavens, that 
other sentiment, dear to every true American heart, Liberty and 
union, now and forever, one and inseparable ! 

The first three of these examples are respectively combinations of close and single compact 



The fourth is a combination of a close and double compact. 

The fifth is a combination of three single compacts. It is compact as a whole, and has a 
compact in each of its parts : if— then, being the correlative words of the whole ; as — so, of the 
first part, and while — then, of the second. 

The sixth contains two single compacts : one comprising the whole, and the other the second 
part: the first has the correlative words, therefore — for, because, and the second, where — there. 

The seventh contains one compact, third form, third variety, which embraces the whole sen- 
tence. Correlative words though— yet. The first part of this compact contains another compact, 
second form : correlative words so — as : the second part, another compact, third form, third 
variety, with the correlatives when — then. 

The eighth contains two single compacts: correlatives so — as, then — if: Why do you so 
repeat my words, as then you would, if you, &c. &c. 

The last, a noble sentence, is singularly interlaced and complicated. It opens with the first 
part of a single compact, the second part of which begins the first of a double compact with 
the first and third proposition expressed : the last beginning at the exclamation and continuing 
with an imperfect loose construction until the word motto is reached ; when another double 
compact with the first and third proposition expressed, is commenced to terminate only with 
the close. Let these examples suffice to show the nature of the mixed sentence. The punctu- 
ation conforms to the nature of the sentences combined. 



CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 101 

II. A circumstance is a part of a simple or compound sen- 
tence, required by the sense, but not essential to the grammatical 
construction. 

It may be a word, clause or sentence : if a sentence, almost any 
of the species or varieties enumerated in the preceding classification. 

It may stand at the beginning, in the middle, (by which I mean 
anywhere between the first and last word,) or at the end of a simple, 
or part of a compound sentence. At the beginning it should be 
followed, in the middle, preceded and followed, and at the end, 
preceded by a comma : at the end of the first part of a compact, it 
should have the comma after it : at the end of any part of a loose 
sentence except the last, it should be followed by the semicolon or 
colon : at the end of a simple, or of the last part of a compound 
sentence, it terminates of course with the period. 

1. Examples at the beginning. 

Thus, the Puritan was made up of two different men. 

Soon, we hear they have filled Jerusalem with their doctrine. 

In these respects, our poetry is more true to nature, and more 
conformable to just taste. 

On the other side, there are those who have no love for polished 
perfection of style : for sustained and unimpassioned accuracy : for 
persuasive but equable diction. 

Instead of catching occasional glimpses of the Deity through an 
obscuring veil, they aspired to gaze full on the intolerable bright- 
ness, and to commune with him face to face. 

In the midst of all this peace, this innocence, and this tranquillity, 
this feast of the mind, this pure banquet of the heart, the destroyer 
comes. 

2. Examples in the middle. 

There is, therefore, now, no condemnation to them that are in 
Christ Jesus. 

Whether, in any country, a choice altogether unexceptionable has 
been made, seems doubtful. 

I have, with a good deal of attention, considered the subject on 
which I was desired to communicate my thoughts. 

The combatants encountered with such rage that, eager to assail, 
and thoughtless of defence, they fell dead upon the field together. 

Far be it from me, cried Demetrius, to lay so heavy a charge 
upon him. 

There are some remembrances, said Harley, which rise involun- 
tarily on my heart and make me almost wish to live. 

A wife, who is said to be lovely even beyond her sex, and graced 

*9* 



102 CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 

with every accomplishment that can render it irresistible, had 
blessed him with her love. 

God, who, at sundry times and in divers manners, spake, in times 
past, unto the fathers by the prophets, hath, in these last days, 
spoken unto us by his Son. 

Why are the statues of the most celebrated modern sculptors, 
notwithstanding the perfection to which the arts have been carried, 
so much inferior to those of the ancients ? 

Will the condign punishment of their countrymen, not for dis- 
turbing the public peace, or the violation of property, but for a well- 
meant endeavor to diffuse the principles of piety and the blessings 
of religion, augment their reverence for the laws ? 

3. Examples at the end. 

He has forfeited my esteem and attachment, answered Demetrius. 
And has he also forfeited the esteem and attachment of the rest of 
mankind ? continued Socrates. 

Acquaint me with those means, answered Demetrius ; for I am a 
stranger to them. — No, answered Demetrius : I would repeat no 
grievances. 

Hug not this delusion to your breast, I pray you. 

No woman is capable of being beautiful, who is not incapable of 
being false. 

I cannot tell how to account for it, but these people have usually 
the preference to our own fools, in the opinion of the sillier part of 
womankind. 

I never travelled in my life, but I do not know whether I could 
have spoken of any foreign country with more familiarity than I do 
at present, in company who are strangers to me. 

III. A parenthesis is a sentence, or a part of a sentence, un- 
necessary both to the construction and sense of the sentence or 
paragraph in which it is inserted ; and it is inserted either in 
another sentence, after a part making imperfect or perfect sense, 
or between two sentences. 

The proper pauses are usually associated with the parenthetic 
marks ; but when the parenthesis is very short, and especially when 
inserted, as it sometimes is, between the parts of a sentence w T hich 
should not receive a pause if the parenthesis were not inserted, 
they are omitted. 

The rule for the punctuation of a parenthesis is very short and 
simple: it always requires after it the pause, or the representative 
of the pause, which properly precedes it. The only exception to 
this rule occurs when the parenthesis concludes a sentence. Then, 
whatever the pause before it, the period, of course, must follow it. 



CLASSIFICATION OFySENTENCES. 103 

The rule is sometimes transgressed, but with manifest impropriety ; 
for any pause longer than a comma before and after the parenthe- 
sis, when inserted between parts of a sentence making imperfect 
sense, would destroy the connection. On the other hand, any 
pause, when the parenthesis is inserted between parts making per- 
fect sense, shorter than the semicolon or colon, would make the 
connection closer than it really is. The application of the rule, 
when the parenthesis stands between two independent sentences, is 
too obvious to need remark. 

EXAMPLES OE THE PARENTHESIS. 

1 . With the pauses necessarily omitted. 

Godwin will punctually go again (Wednesday is Johnson's open 
day) yesterday four weeks next. 

B. is coming to town on Monday (if no kind angel intervene) to 
surrender himself to prison. 

Calling in accidentally on the Professor while he was out, I was 
ushered into the study ; and my nose quickly (most sagacious al- 
ways) pointed me to four tokens lying loose upon the table, which 
indicated thy violent and satanical pride of heart. 

In particular, inquire at Florence for his colossal bronze statue 
(in the grand square, or somewhere) of Perseus. 

My tragedy will be a medley (I intend it to be a medley) of 
laughter and tears, prose and verse, and in some places, rhyme, 
songs, wit, pathos, humor, and, if possible, sublimity. 

Are you still (I fear you are) far from being comfortably settled ? 

It will be observed, that in these examples the parenthesis is inserted between parts not 
merely making imperfect sense, but parts that should not be separated, and are not, by the 
shortest pause, in the absence of the' parenthesis. 

2. With the pauses omitted, but not necessarily. 

I write rather what answers to my feelings (which are some- 
times sharp enough) than express my present ones. 

I therefore walked back, and repassed her with such a look (for 
I could bring myself to nothing more) as might induce her to 
speak. 

If no public regulation can be contrived for that purpose (though 
I cannot help thinking this disease of the great people meets the 
attention of government, as much as the distemper among the 
horned cattle) try, at least, the effects of private admonition, to 
prevent the sound from approaching the infected. 

I know a merry fellow (you partly know him) who, when his 
medical adviser told him he had drunk away all that part, congrat- 
ulated himself (now his liver was gone) that he should be the long- 
est liver of the two. 



104 CLASSIFICATION OF SENTENCES. 

3. With the pauses properly inserted. 

We hold, you know, (and rightly too,) that all government is, or 
ought to be, made and managed for the benefit of the people. 

And there will I nourish thee, (for yet there are five years of 
famine, lest thou, and thy household, and all that thou hast, come 
to poverty. 

Know ye not, brethren, (for I speak to them that know the law,) 
how that the law hath dominion over a man as long as he liveth ? 

Should liberty continue to be abused in this country, as it has 
been for some time past, (and though demagogues may not admit, 
yet observing and sensible men will not deny that it has been,) 
the people will seek relief in a despotism, or in emigration. 

The power of such characters in nature, says Mr. Whately, (from 
whom I am happy to borrow the following observations, not only 
from the beauty of their expression, but from their singular coin- 
cidence in the illustration of the fact I have been endeavoring to 
establish,) the power of such characters is not confined to the ideas 
which the objects themselves imrnediatelj 7 suggest. 

Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering ; (for 
he is faithful that promised ;) and let us consider one another to 
provoke one another to love and good works. 

Then went the Captain with the officers, and brought them with- 
out violence ; (for they feared the people, lest they should have 
been stoned ;) and when they had brought them, they set them 
before the council. 

I will therefore chastise him, and release him. (For of necessity, 
he must release one unto them at the feast.) And they cried out 
all at once, saying, Awajr with this man, and release unto us 
Barabbas ; (who for a certain sedition made in the city, and for 
murder, was cast into prison.) 

While they wish to please, (and why should they not wish it ?) 
they disdain dishonorable means. 

Let the bishop be one that ruleth well his own house : having 
his children in subjection with all gravity : (for if a man know not 
how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of 
God ?) not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the 
condemnation of the devil. 

The little room (was it not a little one ?) at the Salutation was 
already in the way of becoming a fading idea. 

I am so ill just at present, (an illness of my own procuring last 
night : who is perfect ?) that nothing but your very great kindness 
could make me write. 

It was represented by an analogy, (oh, how inadequate !) which 
was borrowed from the religion of paganism. 



EMPHASIS. 105 

She managed this matter so well, (oh, she was the most artful 
of women !) that my father's heart was gone, before I suspected it 
was in danger. 

In short, my genius, (which is a short word now-a-days for 
what-a-great-man-am-I !) was absolutely stifled and overlaid with 
its own riches. 



CHAPTER V 



EMPHASIS. 

I shall speak of emphasis under two heads : first, the nature 
and different kinds of emphasis, and secondly, the effect. 

SEC. I. THE NATURE OF EMPHASIS IN GENERAL; OR COMMON 
EMPHASIS. 

1. Every word in a sentence in part declares, and in part im- 
plies three propositions : first, an affirmative ; second, a negative, 
denying that affirmative ; and third, another affirmative incompatible 
with the first. 

Example. 

By the faculty of a lively and picturesque imagination, a man in 
a dungeon is capable of entertaining himself with scenes and land- 
scapes more beautiful than any that can be found in the whole 
compass of nature. 

The definite article the, the second word in this sentence, is used 
by the author, as all will acknowledge, not only to designate a partic- 
ular faculty to the exclusion of every other which forms a part of our 
constitution, but more especially to contradict a possible assertion 
or supposition, that there is more than one faculty with this par- 
ticular function : an assertion or supposition which would be ex- 
pressed, if a, each or every were substituted for the in the example. 

Such being the case, we have found two of the propositions 
above enumerated : the first is that which the declares : the second 
is that which the contradicts. Somebody says, has said, or may 
say, By a, each or every faculty of, &c. ; but the author, to exclude 



106 EMPHASIS. 

this, says, By the faculty of, &c. But these two propositions neces- 
sarily imply a third ; namely, an intermediate denial of the first ; 
for to oppose one assertion to another, is equivalent to asserting, 
not merely that the one is true, but also that the other is not. In- 
troducing then the intermediate proposition, we obtain the entire 
series involved in the use of the definite article in the case before 
us, as follows : 

By a faculty : not by a faculty, but by the faculty. 

Take another example : the word faculty is applied to the ima- 
gination by the author, in opposition to theories which would make 
it a mere modification of some other faculty, or of the intellect in 
general. It has a furtive reference, therefore, to one or both of 
these ideas, and excludes them as false. Consequently we have 
here, as above, three propositions, thus : 

By the modification, &c. : not by the modification, <fcc, but by 
the faculty. 

Proceeding from word to word, in the same manner, to the con- 
clusion of the sentence, we shall find the same number of proposi- 
tions involved in each : e. g. 

By the faculty of memory : not of memory, but the imagination. 

Of a dull and common-place : not a dull and common-place, but 
a lively and picturesque. 

A man anywhere : not anywhere, but in a dungeon. 

As beautiful : not as beautiful, but more beautiful. 

Than some : not some, but any. 

That have been : not that have been, but that can be. 

In a province : not in a province, but in the whole compass of 
nature, &c. &c. &c. &c. &c. 

2. The first of these propositions being that which the second 
denies, and the third contradicts, I term the relative idea of the 
series : the second, the negative : the third, the contradictory. 

3. Most of the words in a sentence, being employed to convey 
received ideas, that is, ideas common both to the writer and reader, 
speaker and hearer, no necessity exists for indicating the exclusion 
of their relatives, either by for mallyintroducing the series of prop- 
ositions involved, or by any other means. 

This, however, is not true of all : in every sentence, one or more 
are intended to convey ideas, differing from those entertained by 
the reader or hearer ; or supposed to be different ; or different from 
those of third parties referred to : in a w^ord, they are intended to 
convey, not merely particular ideas, but particular ideas in oppo- 
sition to other ideas. 



EMPHASIS^ 107 

In this case, the exclusion of these other ideas must be shown 
by the process before neglected ; or by some associated and re- 
ceived sign of that process ; that is, either by formally introducing 
the series of propositions in every such instance, or by some other 
expedient, natural or conventional, which shall infallibly suggest 
them. 

But to introduce the series of propositions in every such instance, 
would render discourse prolix and wearisome : hence, it is seldom 
done except in dialogue ; where these consequences are shunned, 
or at least mitigated, by distributing the propositions among the 
different speakers. In continuous and sustained prose or poetry, 
the exclusion of the relative ideas is indicated by an unusual pres- 
sure of the voice alone, on the negative, or contradictory, or both, 
as the one, or the other, or both, happen to be expressed : a pres- 
sure, always associated with the series when expressed, and there- 
fore the better fitted to suggest the series, when omitted. 

4. This pressure of the voice is emphasis, which may therefore 
be defined, a significant stress laid on a word to mark the exclusion 
of its relative idea or ideas, expressed or understood. 

It follows that such a thing as absohite emphasis, that is, emphasis without relation, a kind 
of emphasis for which Dr. Porter (see his Analysis of Rhetorical Delivery) contends at some 
length, is unknown to the English language. It will be seen that 1 have appropriated his 
examples below, (see No. 5 and 6,) as excellent illustrations of relative emphasis in its most 
common phase. 

5. The series of propositions, involved, as we have seen, in every 
word of a sentence, and distinctly brought into view by emphasis, 
is, as I have already implied, often complete. More generally, 
however, one or two of the propositions are understood. I subjoin 
a number of examples sufficient to illustrate usage in this respect. 

1. An Example of the whole Series. 

He is the propitiation for our sins [only ;] not for ours only, but 
also for the sins of the whole world. (See 2 Tim. iv. 8.) 

2. Of the first and second alone. 

What would content you? Talent? No. Enterprise? No. 
Courage? No. Reputation? No. Virtue? No. The men 
whom you would select, should possess, not one, but all of these. 

Talent, enterprise, courage, reputation, virtue, are respectively 
the relative ideas of each succeeding no, or negative proposition, 
and a common contradictory understood ; the exact nature of which 
may be inferred from the conclusion of the sentence. Converting 
then the interrogative into declarative sentences, expanding no into 



108 EMPHASIS. 

its equivalent, and supplying the contradictory, we have the series 
of propositions as follows : 

Talent would content you : not talent alone, but something more. 

Enterprise would content you : not enterprise alone, but some- 
thing more. 

Courage would content you : not courage alone, but something 
more. 

Reputation would content you : not reputation alone, but some- 
thing more. 

Virtue would content you : not virtue alone, but something more. 
The men whom you would select, should possess, not one, but all 
of these. 

Or, if it please, thus : 

Talent? No, but something more. Enterprise? No, but 
something more. Courage ? No, but something more. Reputa- 
tion ? No, but something more. Virtue*? No, but something 
more. The men whom you would, &c. 

3. Of the first and third alone. 

Pilate therefore willing to release Jesus, spake again to them. 
But they cried, saying, Crucify him : crucify him. 

Pet. Good Lord, how bright and goodly shines the moon ! 

Kath. The moon ! the sun : it is not moonlight now. 

Pet. I say it is the moon that shines so bright. 

Kath. I know it is the sun that shines so bright. 

In both of these examples, the negative proposition is under- 
stood, and, to complete the series, must be supplied : if supplied, 
the series in the first will run thus : 

Pilate was willing to release Jesus : do not release, but crucify 
him. 

In the second, thus : 

It is the moon : it is not the moon ; it is the sun. 
It is the sun : it is not the sun ; it is the moon. 

I wish the student to observe here the distribution of the propositions among different speak- 
ers in dialogue as hinted above. 

4. Of the second alone. 

Are you desirous that your talents and abilities may procure you 
esteem ? Display them not ostentatiously to view. 

The pleasures of the imagination are not so gross as those of 
sense, nor so refined as those of the understanding. 

The relatives and contradictories, involved in these negatives, 



EMPHASISJ 109 

being supplied, the series in the two examples would be the fol- 
lowing : 

Display them ostentatiously to view: display them not osten- 
tatiously to view, but unostentatiously. 

The pleasures of the imagination are as gross as those of sense : 
the pleasures of the imagination are not so gross as those of sense, 
but more refined. 

The pleasures of the imagination are as refined as those of the 
understanding : they are not so refined as those of the understand- 
ing, but more gross. 

5. Of the second and third alone. 

The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, 
But in ourselves, that we are underlings. 
It is not the business of virtue to extirpate the affections of the 
mind, but to regulate them. 

Caesar generously replied that he came into Italy, not to injure 
the liberties of Rome and its citizens, but to restore them. 

When a Persian soldier was reviling Alexander the Great, his 
officer reprimanded him by saying, Sir, you was paid to fight against 
Alexander, not to rail at him. 

Resolved into the series thus : 

In our stars : not in our stars, but in ourselves. 

To extirpate : not to extirpate, but to regulate. 

To injure : not to injure ; to restore. 

To rail : not to rail ; to fight. 

The intelligent student will not fail to observe that this combination of the emphatic series 
is identical with the double compact, with the first and third part alone expressed. 

6. Of the third alone. 

By the faculty of a lively and picturesque imagination, a man in 
a dungeon is capable of entertaining himself with scenes and land- 
scapes more beautiful than any that can be found in the whole 
compass of nature. 

Up ! comrades ! up ! in Rokeby's halls 
Ne'er be it said your courage falls. 

Hence ! home, you idle creatures, get you home, 
Is this a holiday ? 

The relative and negative of the first example, have already been 
given on a preceding page. (See Sec. I, 1.) Those of the second 
and third example are as follows : 

10 



110 EMPHASIS. 

We will stay, sit or lie here : stay, &c, not, but up ! up ! 

Always be it said : not always, &c, but ne'er. 

We will stay here : stay not here, but hence ! home ! &c. 

6. The contradictory often excludes several relative ideas. This 
will be observed in the following quasi dialogue, and the two suc- 
ceeding examples. 

A. Describe an orange. 

B. An orange is conical, yellow and juicy. 

C. An orange is not conical, but oblong, yellow and juicy. 

D. An orange is neither conical nor oblong, but round, yellow 
and juicy. 

Round, the contradictory of D, excludes, as the two negatives 
before it clearly imply, both the relative conical in the description 
of B, and the relative oblong in that of C. 

In the examples which follow, the relatives are understood, but 
the negatives render them obvious. 

Rather than man's innocency should want an outward comfort, 
God will begin a new creation : not out of the earth, which was 
the matter of man ; not out of the inferior creatures, which were 
the servants of man ; but out of man himself. 

Not outward magnificence, not state, not wealth, not the favor of 
the mighty, but God is the glory of Israel. 



II. ANTITHETIC EMPHASIS. 

I. Antithetic emphasis is emphasis in contrast with emphasis. 
It occurs only in the rhetorical figure, antithesis ; from which, as 
well as from the nature of the emphasis itself, I derive the name. 
It is single, double, treble, quadruple, &c. &c. 

1. Antithetic emphasis is single, when only one emphatic word 
in contrast occurs in each member of the antithesis : e. g. 

The children of this world marry and are given in marriage, but 
they that shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world, neither 
marry nor are given in marriage. 

2. It is double, when two emphatic words in one member of the 
antithesis, are in contrast with two in the succeeding member or 
members : e. g. 

The young are slaves to novelty : the old, to custom. 
The first gave two shillings ; the second, three ; the third, four; 
the fourth, five ; the fifth, six ; &c. &c. 

3. It is treble, quadruple, <fec, when three or more emphatic 
words occur in the same member of the antithesis in contrast re- 



EMPHASIS. Ill 

spectively with a corresponding number in the succeeding member 
or members. It should be observed, that antithesis of this kind 
seldom occurs ; and when it does, on account of the difficulty, if 
not impossibility of marking such complicated contrasts with the 
voice, it is practically resolved into the double : I had almost said 
into the single ; for rarely is more than three of the emphatic words, 
even of the double, distinctly marked as such by the voice ; though 
in theory all of them are equally emphatic. But this effect, which 
is much like that of deferred emphasis, (see Deferred Emphasis 
below,) is strikingly obvious in the treble now under consideration ; 
as the following examples, which I adduce from Walker, will 
show. 

He raised a mortal to the skies ; 

She drew an angel down. 

She in her girls again is courted : 
I go a wooing with my boys. 

The following example of the double, however, will prove that 
this effect is not confined to the treble. 

A good man loves himself too well to lose an estate by gaming, 
and his neighbor too well to win one. 

There are here four words in both members of the antithesis, which in theory are equally 
emphatic ; yet three of them only, namely, himself, neighbor, and win, can, with propriety, 
be marked emphatically by the voice. 

II. It is a peculiarity of antithetic emphasis, that each of the 
contrasted words has all the others for its relatives : e. g. 

The children of this world marry and are given in marriage, but 
they who shall be accounted worthy of that world, neither marry 
nor are given in marriage. 

Giving the series of propositions involved in each of these words, 
they will be as follows : 

The children of that world marry and are given in marriage : not 
the children of that world, but the children of this world. 

They who shall be accounted worthy of that world : not of that, 
but this. 

Again : 

The young are slaves to novelty : the old to custom. 

Giving the series involved in each of these emphatic words, we 
shall have the following : 

The old are slaves to novelty : not the old, but the young. 
The young are slaves to custom : not the young, but the old. 



112 \ EMPHASIS. 

Or the following : 

The young are slaves to custom : not to custom, but to novelty. 

The old are slaves to novelty : not to novelty, but to custom. 

The same principle holds good, I believe, whatever the number 
of members of which the antithesis may consist : e. g. 

The young are slaves to novelty : the old, to custom : the middle- 
aged, to both : the dead, to neither. 

The following is the series of the first emphatic word in each 
member : 

The old, middle-aged and dead are slaves to novelty : not the old, 
&c, but the young. 

The young, the middle-aged and dead are slaves to custom : not 
the young, (fee, but the old. 

The young, old and dead are slaves to both : not the young, &c, 
but the middle-aged. 

The young, old and middle-aged are slaves to neither : not the 
young, &c, but the dead. 

An exception to this mutual or reciprocal relation occurs in an 
antithesis formed on negative propositions : e. g. 

The pleasures of the imagination are not so gross as those of 
sense, nor so refined as those of the understanding. 

If the student will turn to I, 5, 4, above, he will perceive that the two series, when produced, 
are entirely distinct ; and consequently that the emphatic words are not mutually relative ; 
for gross and refined relate, not to each other, but to gross and refined understood. Though 
antithetic in position, the example therefore must be regarded as a case of common emphasis. 

III. DEFERRED EMPHASIS. 

When two or more adverbs, adjectives, nouns, or verbs, immedi- 
ately connected by copulative conjunctions expressed or understood, 
are in theory equally emphatic, the emphatic stress is laid on the 
last of the series only ; that is to say, the emphasis is deferred. 

To deliver them all with the same pressure of the voice, would 
cause at the same time harshness and monotony. 

1. Adverbs. 
When or where I saw it, I am unable, at the present moment, to 
say. 

2. Adjectives. 

True charity is not a meteor which occasionally glares, but a lu- 
minary which, in its orderly and regular course, dispenses a benig- 
nant influence. 

In this respect its meaning, like that of words, is arbitrary, local 
and mutable. 



EMPHASISi 



113 



Next to want of skill in selection, is tlie fault of an undiscrimi- 
nating, inanimate manner of reading. 

Its tidings, whether of peace or wo, are the same to the poor, the 
ignorant, and the weak, as to the rich, the wise, and the 'powerful. 

3. Nouns. 

It was a charge of which there was not only no proof or probabil- 
ity, but which was, in itself, wholly impossible to be true. 

A man who cherishes a strong ambition for preferment, if he 
does not fall into adulation and servility, is in danger of losing all 
manly independence. 

It is reasonable to suppose that affections, and intellectual habits, 
such as benevolence or malignity, cheerfulness or melancholy, deep 
thought or frivolity, must impress themselves upon the face. 

4. Verbs, 
If you had protested or rebelled, you might now have been safe. 
Little minds are tamed and subdued by misfortunes ; but great 
minds rise above them. 

IV. CONVENTIONAL EMPHASIS. 

By conventional emphasis, I mean emphasis established in par- 
ticular instances by general consent, though improperly placed. 

Among examples of this, may be enumerated the usual formula 
of continuation, and so forth, or simply, c£c. ; which is always de- 
livered with emphasis on so, when forth is really the emphatic word. 

To this head, we must also refer such phrases as, from day to 
day, from week to week, from year to year, from month to month, 
from house to house, from hand to hand, from heart to heart, from 
time to time, &c. &c. Custom uniformly places the emphasis in 
such phrases, on the nouns ; when propriety manifestly requires it 
to be placed on the prepositions : as in Ps. xc. 2 : Before the 
mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the 
earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God. 

SEC. II. THE VOCAL EFFECT OF EMPHASIS 

I. The peculiar effect of emphasis is to raise the voice, by means 
of an upper sweep, above the level of the sentence, to cause its 
descent with unusual force upon the emphatic word, if a word of 
one syllable, or upon its primary accent, if a word of two or more 
syllables, and thence by means of a lower sweep, to carry it below 
the level of the sentence, and back again to it or above it. (See 
Plate, Fig. 2, e.f) 

In the examples which follow, other words are emphatic besides those which are marked 
as such. Those are marked which are intended for present illustration ; to these the atten- 
tion of the student is exclusively desired. 

10* 



114 EMPHASIS. 



Examples of this effect. 

The Ameribans may become faithful friends of the English, but 
subjects, never. 

The good man loves himself too well to lose an estate by gaming, 
and his neighbor too well to win one. 

No ! I'm surprised at that ; 
Where / come from, it is the common chat. 

Matches and overmatches ! Those terms are more applicable else- 
where than here, and fitter for other assemblies than this. 

You have invited me, and I have very willingly accepted your in- 
vitation, to address you on this anniversary occasion. 

If he find himself pleased with the associations, and prepared to 
be quite satisfied, though the parallel should be entirely completed, 
I had almost said, I am satisfied also ; but that I shall think of. 

Yet the echo and report of the blows by which other countries 
have fallen, are supposed to have more effect on us than the blows 
themselves produced upon the miserable victims who sunk beneath 
them. 

When I took occasion, Mr. President, two days ago, to throw 
out some ideas with respect to the policy of the government in re- 
lation to the public lands, nothing certainly could have been further 
from my thoughts, than that I should be compelled again to throw 
myself upon the indulgence of the senate. 

II. The upper sweep is developed on so much of the sentence, 
as lies between the primary accent of the emphatic word, and the 
first pause either of perfect or imperfect sense preceding it ; and 
the lower sweep on so much of the sentence, as lies between the 
primary accent of the " emphatic word, and the first pause of im- 
perfect sense succeeding it. 

Here it is of the utmost importance to have in mind the various cases in which the comma 
is suppressed : in other words, the circumstances in which the shortest pause may be made, 
though the comma is not inserted ; for in all these cases, the effect on emphasis is precisely 
the same, whether the comma is inserted or not : the development of the sweeps is arrested 
and limited to the "division of sense to which the emphatic word belongs. 

The rule above given applies exclusively to declarative or declarative exclamatory sen- 
tences. 

Examples. 

If the student will turn to the examples under the preceding head, he will find as much 
illustration as he needs, of the effect of emphasis in a central position. I shall limit my quo- 
tations here to the purpose of showing how the sweeps are affected by approximation of the 
emphatic word, or its primary accent, to the pause before and after it. 

Other misfortunes may be borne, or their effects overcome. 
Equinoctial storms occur in the spring and fall ; they are dis- 
tinguished both for length and severity. 



EMPHASIS. 115 

There is a natural difference between merit and demerit. 

Though he will not rise and give him because he is his friend. 
yet because of his importunity, he will rise and give him as many 
as he needeth. 

These ages have no memory y but they left 
Their traces' in the desert. 

For we dare not make ourselves of the number, or compare our- 
selves with some that commend themselves, for they, measuring 
themselves by themselves and comparing themselves among them- 
selves, are not wise. 

I might multiply examples to any extent, but I presume the preceding are sufficient to 
show that the upper sweep diminishes with the approximation of the emphatic word to the 
pause before it, until, being the first word after the pause and having primary accent on its 
first syllable, the upper sweep is cut off, and the voice descends directly from a higher point 
than the level of the sentence upon it : (see Plate, Fig. 2, b :) to show also that with the ap- 
proximation of the emphatic word to the pause of imperfect sense after it, the lower sweep 
diminishes, until it is formed on the last word and the very last syllable of that word, if having 
the primary accent. (See Plate> Fig. 2, c.) 

Exception to the Rule. I. When emphasis is placed upon the 
last, or nearly the last word of a division of imperfect sense, fol- 
lowed by a short circumstance, the lower sweep is often developed 
on this circumstance, notwithstanding the pause. 

JExamples. 

But youth, sir, is not my only crime. 

We may be assured, gentlemen, that he who really loves the 
thing itself, loves its finest exhibitions. 

The pillage and bloody devastation of Italy strike us with horror ; 
but Italy, we are to believe, is contented with what has befallen 
her. 

Oh, cease not yet to beat, thou vital urn ! 
Wait, gushing life, oh, wait my love's return. 
There be, perhaps, who barren hearts avow, 
Cold as the rocks on Torneo's hoary brow. 
Heal war, my friends, is a very different thing from that painted 
image of it, which we see on a parade, or at a review. 

Exception II. Frequently when emphasis falls on a word in 
the first part, or member of the first part of a single or double 
compact, the upper and lower sweep are developed on the whole of 
that part or member, notwithstanding subdivisions, marked by the 
comma. [See 1st sentence under improper use of period: Punctuation.) 

III. Though legitimately falling under the preceding rule, it 
deserves distinct notice, that when an emphatic word is immediately 
preceded and followed by the pause, (preceded by the pause either 
of perfect or imperfect sense, and followed by the pause of imper- 



116 EMPHASIS. 

feet sense,) the emphasis is exhausted upon that word, though a 
word of one syllable, and forms the shortest possible development 
of the sweeps; viz., the circumflex. (See Plate, Fig. 1.) 

Examples. 

Necessity is the mother of invention. 

Delicacy leans more to feeling : correctness more to reason and 
judgment. 

War is the law of violence : peace the law of love. 

The pause after the emphatic words in each of these examples, is produced by the empha- 
sis. (See Punctuation, Comma : Cases of Omission 1, Note.) 

Nothing certainly could have been further from my thoughts, 
than that I should be compelled again to throw myself on the 
indulgence of the senate. 

Still, it may be well for some proud men to remember that a 
fire is lighted in these colonies, which one breath of their king 
may kindle into such fury, that the blood of all England cannot 
extinguish it. 

No doubt the sheep he meant to steal ; 
But, hapless, close behind his heel, 

Was ploughman Joe ; 

Who just arrived in time to stop 

The murderous blow. 

IV. When emphasis, and partial or perfect close, meet on the 
same word, they coincide. Occasionally the emphasis makes the 
close proceed from a higher pitch of voice, and descend with 
greater force, than usual. 

Examples. 

Nor is he willing to stop there. 

The Americans may become faithful friends of the English, but 
subjects, never. 

Whose is this image and superscription ? They say unto him, 
Cwsar's. 

And when the chief priests and Pharisees had heard his para- 
bles, they perceived that he spake of them. 

Delicacy leans more to feeHng : correctness more to reason and 
judgment. The former is the gift of nocture : the latter more the 
product of culture and art. 

These things I say now, not to insult one who is fallen, but to 
render more secure those who stand'' : not to irritate the hearts of 
the wounded, but to preserve those who are not yet wounded, in 
sound health? : not to submerge him who is tossed on the billows, 
but to instruct those who are sailing before a propitious breeze. 



EMPHASIS. 117 

It is the sacrament of our naHure : not only the duty, but the 
indulgence of man. It is his first great privilege. It is among his 
last, most endearing delights, when the bosom glows with the idea 
of reverberated love x : when to requite on the visitations of nature, 
and return the blessings that have been received, what was emo- 
tion, is fixed into vital principle ; what was instinct, is habituated 
into a master -passion, sways all the sweetest energies of man\ 
hangs over each vicissitude of all that must pass away\ aids the 
melancholy virtues in their last sad task of life', cheers the lan- 
guor of decrepitude and age", explores the thought, explains the 
aching eye ! 

V. When emphasis is placed on a word preceding partial or 
perfect close, in the same division of sense, the lower sweep is 
converted into the falling slide to the close : unless followed by 
another emphasis coinciding with partial or perfect close according 
to Rule IV. above. An example of this will be found in Ch. 
VII. Sec. 1, sentence 9, "Judicious grieve." (See Plate, Fig. 2, d.) 

This effect may be traced to the want of room for the development of the sweep before 
the influence of the close is felt. 

Examples. 

Force decided all things. 

If the gentleman provoke the war, he shall have war. 

The gentleman, sir, in declining to postpone the debate, told the 
senate, with the emphasis of his hand upon his heart, that there 
was something rankling here, which he wished to relieve. But 
the gentleman disclaims having used the word rankling. It would 
not be safe, Mr. President, for the honorable member to appeal to 
those around him, upon the question, whether he did, in fact, 
make use of that word, but he may have been unconscious of it. 
But still, with or without the use of that particular word, he had 
yet something here, he said, of which he wished to rid himself by 
an immediate reply. In this respect, sir, I have a great advan- 
tage over the honorable gentleman. 

The value of the graphic art consists in its being a medium for 
the acquisition of knowledge, and for the communication of it. 

Art may diminish, but cannot remove the difficulty. 

VI. When emphasis in any part of a sentence is unusually 
strong, as in an earnest assertion, in an energetic and pointed 
denial, in a stern command, in an imprecation, or in a direct con- 
tradiction ; it is followed by the falling slide to the close partial or 
perfect, as the case may be. (See ibid.) 

The reason of this is obvious : the force of the emphasis is overpowering : it carries every 
thing before it. 



118 EMPHASIS. 

Examples. 

Then, patriotism is eloquent : then, self-devotion is eloquent. 
The clear conception, outrunning the deductions of logic, the high 
purpose, the firm resolve, the dauntless spirit, speaking on the 
tongue, beaming from the eye, informing every feature, and urging 
the whole man onward, right onward to his object, — this, this is 
eloquence ; or rather, it is some-thing greater and higher than all 
eloquence : it is action ; noble, sublime, godlike action. 

And he began to curse and to swear : saying, I know not this 
man of whom ye speak. 

It is not true that he played the traitor to his country in the 
hour of her trial. 

Go to your natural religion. 
Answer me to what I ask you. 

Infected be the air whereon they ride ! 
Accursed be the tongue that tells me so ! 

Pet. How bright and goodly shines the moon ! 

Kath. The moon ! the sun : it is not moonlight now. 
Pet. I say it is the moon that shines so bright. 
Kath. I know it is the sun that shines so bright. 

VII. When emphasis is placed on any word in a definite inter- 
rogative, the only effect caused, is a dip or indentation in the gen- 
eral direction of voice, or rising slide. (See Plate, Fig. Q.a.b. c. d.) 

Examples. 

Were there not ten cleansed '? 

Will ye also go away ? 

Believe ye that I am able to do this ? 

Is Christ divided ? was Paul crucified for you ? or were ye bap- 
tized in the name of Paul ? 

If his son ask bread, will he give him a stone ? or if he ask a 
fish, will he give him a serpent ? 

Are ye able to drink the cup that /drink of? and to be baptized 
with the baptism that / am baptized with ? 

Has a wise and good God furnished us with desires which have 
no corresponding objects, and raised expectations in our breasts, 
with no other view but to disappoint them ? 

VIII. When emphasis is placed on any word in an indefinite 
interrogative, it is preceded either by the upper emphatic sweep, 
or simply by accentual sweeps, and followed by the falling slide to 



EMPHASIS. 119 

partial or perfect close ; unless arrested by another emphatic word ; 
in which case the voice recovers from the slide to repeat the pre- 
vious process. [Plate, Fig. 7.) 

Examples. 

What think ye of Christ ? whose son is he ? 

Who is this ? 

Whom do men say that I, the Son of man, am ? 

Who touched me ? 

Why tempt ye me ? 

Why, what evil hath he done V 

What will ye then that I shall do unto him whom ye call the 
king of the Jews ? 

By what authority doest thou these things ; or who gave thee 
this authority ? 

Why could not we cast him out ? 

When saw we thee an hungered, or athirst, or a stranger, or 
naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee ? 

Who could witness, without indignant desperation, the mother 
who bore him, inhumanly murdered in the defence of her infants ? 

Where is the youth in this assembly, who could, without ago- 
nized emotions, behold the Gallic invader hurling the brand of 
devastation into the dwelling of his father, or with sacrilegious 
cupidity plundering the communion-table of his God ? 

IX. Emphasis in indirect interrogations is preceded by the upper 
and followed by the lower sweep : producing the waving slide of 
this species of question. (See Plate, Fig. 2, e. /.) 

Examples. 

Your father gave you permission to go there yesterday f 

You saw him after the event occurred f 

You will ride to town to-day f 

You will ride to town to-day f 

You will ride to town to-day f 

You will ride to town to-day f 

You will ride to town to-day f 

X. The effect of emphasis on the first part of a double interroga- 
tive is the same as that on definite interrogatives ; and on the 
second part, it is the same as that on indefinite interrogatives, ex- 
cept that the upper emphatic sweep is scarcely ever developed. 
The strong tendency to slide down is almost too strong even for 
accentual sweeps. (See Plate, Fig. 6, 7.) 



120 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

Examples. 
Can we see God, or must we believe in him ? 
Will you ride to town to-day, or to-morrow ? 
Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another 9 



CHAPTER VI. 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

The design of the rules which follow, it must be borne in mind, 
is to prescribe only the peculiar and therefore characteristic deliv- 
ery of the different species of sentences, enumerated in the Classi- 
fication. With regard to pitch, force and rate, they are silent ; 
and also with regard to emphasis : to the former, because it is a 
fundamental assertion in this system of elocution, that whatever 
the pitch, force or rate, the sentence is delivered, if delivered cor- 
rectly, in the same manner: to the latter, because emphasis merely 
modifies the characteristic delivery of a sentence, without changing 
it ; and more especially, because it modifies it in conformity to fixed 
and invariable rules which have been stated and illustrated with 
great care in the preceding chapter : rules, showing that its effects 
depend not at all on the structure of sentences, but with one or two 
exceptions, upon its position relatively to the pauses. The excep- 
tions referred to, relate to its effects when unusually strong and on 
the rising and falling slide. {SeeEmph. Sec. 2, VI, VII, VIII.) 

Such being the scope of the rules which follow,. I now add that 
the consideration of pitch, force, rate and emphasis, is by no means 
excluded from the exercises under them. On the contrary, there 
is nothing, comprised in the general subject of modulation, which 
is not here to be applied. For this purpose the following direc- 
tions are given, with great confidence in the tendency of a com- 
pliance with them to form a correct, varied and graceful delivery. 

1. Describe the sentence before you, as simple or compound ; 
declarative, interrogative or exclamatory ; close, compact or loose, 
&c. : continually defining what you mean by simple, by compound, 
&c. &c. 

2. State the proper punctuation ; and why proper, with allow- 
able deviations : and in what circumstances allowable. 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 121 

3. Give its characteristic delivery under the rule. 

4. Deliver it at every variety of pitch ; finally at the true or me- 
dium pitch : with every variety of force ; finally with the proper 
degree : with every variety of rate ; finally with the proper rate. 

5. Show what would be the effect of emphasis on each of the 
words in succession, or some of the most important of them ; and 
the reason why ; and finally point out the true emphatic word, and 
describe the effect of emphasis on it. 

6. Now deliver the sentence, as modified by emphasis. 

In obeying the last of these directions, the student should be 
careful to give as full a development of the emphatic sweeps, as 
the nature of the case will allow. No harm will be done, if even 
they are a little exaggerated ; that is, if their curves are expand- 
ed somewhat beyond the actual demands of the sense. They break 
up, and break up effectually, habits of monotony : they give com- 
pass and variety to intonation ; flexibility and power to the voice. 



SEC. I. SIMPLE SENTENCES. 
CLASS I. SIMPLE DECLARATIVE SENTENCES. 

Rule I. Simple declarative sentences are delivered with accen- 
tual sweeps, the bend, if necessary, at intermediate pauses, and 
perfect close. 

Accentual sweeps, it will be remembered, are those slight undulations produced in the tenor 
of speech by articulatory accents : the bend, a slight upward turn of the voice : perfect close, a 
fall of the voice at the end of a sentence to the key, or below it. (See Modulation, ch. iii.) 
For the effects of emphasis, see Emphasis, ch. v. sect. ii. 

Simple sentences seldom have intermediate pauses, and when they do, the bend is not 
always associated with them : a bare suspension of the voice being all that is necessary to 
mark the division of sense. (See Plate, Fig. 8, a. b.) 

Examples for exercise. 

Jesus wept. Rejoice evermore. Birds fly. Remember Lot's 
wife. It was the general. All were hushed. Pray without ceas- 
ing. It is not ten years ago. The national independence had been 
won. Let love be without dissimulation. Be of the same mind 
one toward another. Let every one be subject to the higher 
powers. Let every one please his neighbor for his good to edifi- 
cation. Ye are the light of the world. I was never there in my 
life. I have told you the truth. I heard their drowning cry, 
mingling with the wind. He Avas distinguished by modesty. That 
garment is not well made. Be not forward in the presence of your 
superiors. ' 

He left his father's house for the halls of the academy. We 
were up before daylight to enjoy the magnificent spectacle of the 
rising sun. His great qualities were attended by a due sense of 

11 



122 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

his own imperfections. Then shall the innumerable varieties of the 
human race worship in her glorious temple. It shall turn to you 
for a testimony. Ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake. 
He makes a vow to forsake the world. Thus have ye made the 
commandment of God of none effect by your tradition. I re- 
ceived a letter in time to reply before the departure of the mail 
last Saturday morning. Accept the patriotic farewell of an over- 
flowing heart. The universe might be poised on a drop of water 
kept in a compact state. 

Now did Micah begin to see some little glimpses of his own 
error. This occasioned his being hissed by the whole audience. 
His wit was of the first order. The stores of his mind were inex- 
haustible. The army is loaded with the spoil of many nations. 
Let no one detract from the influence of woman. Now the God 
of peace be with you all. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be 
with you. And every man went to his own house. Thou art the 
Son of God. Now his parents went every year to Jerusalem at 
the feast of the passover. Their claim possesses a peculiar title to 
our consideration. The contest becomes, at last, a scene of un- 
mitigated anguish. 

Virtue 7 is the condition of happiness. Ignorance 7 is the mother 
of error. One ounce of gold 7 is worth fifteen ounces of silver. To 
listen to the voice of reason is always safe. The distinction of his 
fortune was the consequence of his temerity. The whole course of 
his life has been distinguished by generous actions. The study of 
mathematics is an excellent discipline of the mind. Sensitiveness 
to the approbation of virtuous men, is laudable. 

Of neither of these persuasives 7 have the effects been great. At 
the bottom of the garden 7 ran a little rivulet. With his conduct 
last evening 7 I was not pleased. That interesting history 7 he did 
not read. To the perusal of the authors of the second class I shall 
now proceed. To the ancients fire-arms were unknown. That he 
is a great man you cannot deny. After a denial of the charge he 
withdrew in dignified displeasure to his own house. To pray well 
is the better half of study. Over these matchless talents probity 
threw her brightest lustre. To the fate of the government is uni- 
ted the fate of the country. But on this part of the subject I need 
not enlarge. For successive infractions of the law these punish- 
ments may be increased up to a certain limit. Of a new truth 
then flashed on his mind the first gleams. 

Another impediment to excellence is versatility. From the nature 
of Christianity this must be so. Like a spectre in the night, the 
grandeur of Rome has vanished. Among the most remarkable of 
its attributes, is justice. To the necessity of endeavoring to reach 
New York by land, this embarrassing circumstance reduced him. 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 123 

To her'', many a soldier, on the point of accomplishing his ambi- 
tion 7 , sacrifices the opportunity. Vanity, of all the passions, is the 
most unsocial. I cannot part with jo\\, fellow- citizens, without 
urging the long remembrance of our present assembly. He ought, 
therefore, to take the greatest care of the fortune still in his pos- 
session. The prayers of David, the son of Jesse, are ended. And 
very early in the morning, the first day of the week, they came 
unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun. 

In the autumn of 1783 7 , the war had closed with glory. The 
different periods of revolving day seemed each, with cunning magic / , 
to diffuse a different charm over the scene. The loss of reputation 
for good management 7 , is, in this case, to be traced to a little cir- 
cumstance. Risk not, for a moment, in visionary theories, the solid 
blessings of your lot. But on this part of the subject, I need not 
enlarge. The less pleasing task now devolves upon me, of bidding 
you, in the name of the nation, adieu. The success of one, is the 
disappointment of multitudes. The surest evidence of Robert 
Hall's greatness, is the very fact of his celebrity. 

You may be assured, gentlemen 7 , of my continued regard. You 
live, my friends 7 , in an extraordinary age. It is too late, now 7 , to 
make a fresh distribution of the honors to the worthies of the Rev- 
olution. To all, in truth, the same lesson comes. Suddenly, the 
sound of the signal-gun broke the stillness of the night. We will 
endeavor to refute, now, his third argument., To a great extent, 
the same is true of literary pursuits. But every difference of opin- 
ion, is not a difference of principle. It is in vain, sir, to extenuate 
the matter. Besides, sir, we have no election. He may not accept 
the invitation without the permission of his parents. An orator 
may often, by this kind of style, gain great admiration, without be- 
ing near to his proper end. 

It has been usual, on occasions like the present 7 , to give a his- 
tory of the wrongs endured by our fathers. In the prodigious ef- 
forts of a veteran army beneath the dazzling splendor of their 
array 7 , there is something revolting to a reflecting mind. Sir, I 
see no wisdom in making this provision for future changes. Be- 
yond that, I seek not to penetrate the veil. 

Nations would do well 
To extort their truncheons from the puny hands 
Of heroes. 

With eye askance 
I view the muscular proportioned limb 
Transformed to a lean shank. ' 

And still, in memory's twilight bowers, 
The spirits of departed hours, 



124 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

With mellowing tints, portray 

The blossoms of life's vernal flowers 

Forever fallen away. 

Light o'er the woods of dark brown oak, 
The west wind wreathed the hovering smoke 

From cottage roofs, concealed 

Below a rock abruptly broke 

In rosy light revealed. 

To the rule above given for the delivery of simple declarative sentences, there are appa- 
rently many exceptions ; but it will be found, on examination, that they are merely apparent, 
not real. I refer to those sentences which, instead of coming to a perfect declarative close, 
terminate with the emphatic lower sweep or with the circumflex. These are not simple 
declarative sentences, nor even, in the main, simple sentences ; but simple indirect interroga- 
tives incorrectly punctuated ; or the first part of a single compact either incorrectly punctuated 
orhaving the second part understood ; or the first part of a double compact incorrectly punc- 
tuated. I subjoin examples of each, that when the student meets with them, he may easily 
recognise and refer them to their appropriate places in the classification. 

Examples. 

My dear, you have some pretty beads there. Yes, papa. — 
He is not gone. No. 

He could go there. But when I asked him to go with me, he 
refused. — Surely he was guilty of a great breach of propriety. 

Aman. He saw her and gave the letter. 

Mar. Well. 

Aman. And when he got his answer he returned. 

Mar. Well. 

Aman. And finding no one at home, came to me. 

Mar. Well. 

Aman. Well, well : what means this well ? 

Mar. It means, tell me all. 

It was not on account of his manners. His morals formed the 
objection. 

I am not the panegyrist of England. I am not dazzled by her 
riches, nor awed by her power. 

The first two of these examples, though they look very much like simple declarative sen- 
tences, are obviously indirect questions. 

Again, the first part of the next example looks altogether like a simple declarative ; when 
in fact it is the first part of a single compact, of which, but, immediately succeeding, begins 
the second. The two parts should have been separated by the comma. The sentence which 
follows the dash is a simple indirect interrogative of the third kind. 

Well, in the dialogue, three times repeated, is each time the first part of a single compact : 
the second part is understood. If complete, it would read thus: "Well, indeed, but what 
then 5" Or thus : " He did so far well, indeed, but what did he next 5" 

The last pair of examples are first parts of double compacts : the first being followed by the 
third part, and the second being one of a series of the first part. The period, in both cases, 
incorrectly supplants the semicolon. 



THE BEND, SWEEPS SLIDES, AND CLOSES APPLIED. 125 



CLASS II. SIMPLE INTERROGATIVE SENTENCES. 
1. THE DEFINITE INTERROGATIVE. 

Rule II. Simple definite interrogative sentences are delivered 
with the rising slide, ending only with the last word. (See Plate, 
Fig.Z) 

For the effect of emphasis, see Empfu IT. 7. Pauses have so little influsnce on this species 
of sentence, that I have thought it unnecessary to notice them in the rule. Unless the sentence 
is a long one, they should not have the bend associated with them, but be merely marked by 
a suspension of the voice. 

Examples. 
Can you read ? Shall we go ? Do they sing well ? Have 
they gone into the country ? Will you ride to town to-day ? 
Will it not afflict your friends ? Did not your submission appease 
the anger of your offended father ? Should not merchants be 
punctual in paying their debts ? Is not forgiveness honorable to 
any man ? Shall we sully a character, rendered illustrious by an 
uninterrupted career of virtue ? Should I not have devoted my- 
self entirely to the service of my country ? Would you wish to 
ruin yourself in public opinion to gratify your resentment ? Would 
it be proper to write to his friends, now absent from home, about 
this melancholy event ? Are you aware of the discreditable 
reports in circulation about you ? May not this disastrous event, 
my friend, have, after all, a tendency to advance the interests of 
those, at present, most painfully affected by it ? Has any one 
called on you, this morning, to invite you to the musical entertain- 
ment at the Odeon ? Could you, with your knowledge of his 
character, deem him vain enough to aspire to that high degree of 
honor ? Are ye without understanding also ? Shall the Turk 
still pollute the soil sanctified by the brightest genius ? Will you 
not contribute to the release of this people ? Will you make no 
effort for their redemption ? Shall they still bend their neck to 
the cruel yoke for the want of your assistance ? Did not even- 
handed justice, ere long, commend the poisoned chalice to their 
own lips ? And has it come to this ? May we fly at the approach 
of danger? 

Is this a dagger lying now before me, 
The handle toward my hand ? 

Can the tuned follower of the sacred nine 
Soothe, with his melody, insatiate death ? 

Can wisdom lend, with all her heavenly power, 
The pledge of joy's anticipated hour? 
11* 



126 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

Has nature, in her calm, majestic march, 
Faltered with age at last ? — Does the bright sun 
Grow dim in heaven ? 

When a circumstance succeeds a simple definite interrogative sentence, and is dependent 
on it, both are delivered with the same rising slide ; or rather, the slide of the interrogation 
is continued to the end of the circumstance. 

Examples. 

Am I my brother's keeper ? said the unhappy man. 

Have you read my Key to the Romans ? said Dr. Taylor, of Nor- 
wich, to Mr. Newton. 

Do you dread death in my company ? he cried to the anxious 
sailors, when the ice on the coast of Holland had almost crushed 
the boat that was bearing him to the shore. 

Exceptions to the rule. 

1. When the same simple definite question is repeated, the re- 
petition may adopt the delivery of the indefinite interrogative. 
(See Rule III.) 

I say may adopt, because, though in most cases, reversing the slide gives variety and in- 
creased energy to the delivery, it is not absolutely necessary. This repetition usually takes 
place in conversational or dramatic pieces ; when a question, asked for the first time, has not 
been distinctly understood ; when the reply is not to the point or evasive ; or when the ques- 
tion refers to two different objects antithetically opposed. In formal discourses it is employed 
simply for the sake of greater emphasis. Examples of each are subjoined in the order of 
enumeration. 

Examples. 
Is he honest ? Is he faithful ? Is he capable ? 
Am. Did you see him there ? 
Karl. Sir? 
Am. Did you see him there ? 

Count. Howe'er, I charge thee, 

As Heaven shall work in me for thine avail, 
To tell me truly. 

Hel. Good madam, pardon me ! 

Count. Do you love my son ? 

Hel. Your pardon, noble mistress ! 

Count. Love you my son ? 

Hel. Do not you love him, madam ? 

Count. Go not about : my love hath in't a bond, 
Whereof the world takes note. Come, come, disclose 
The state of your affections. 
Peters, fearful that his companion might overlook some of the 
happy hits of the different personages on the stage, soon electrified 
the audience by exclaiming, without turning his head, in a suppressed 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES A^ND CLOSES APPLIED. 127 

but emphatic voice when particularly pleased, Austin, d'ye hear 
that ? and again after a little while, Austin, d'ye hear that ? 

Has the gentleman done ? Has he completely done ? He was 
unparliamentary from the beginning to the end of his speech. 

Will you deny it ? Will you deny it ? said he, repeating the 
question in a louder and more emphatic tone. 

2. A series of simple definite questions, with or without inter- 
mediate answers, may have its last member delivered like an indefi- 
nite interrogative. (See Rule III. and Plate, Fig. 4.) 

I say may for the same reason as before. The nature of the series will not always admit of 
it ; but when it will, reversing the slide has a fine effect. 

Examples. 

Fie, fie on all tired jades, on all mad masters, and all foul ways. 
Was ever man so beaten ? Was ever man so rayed ?* Was ever 
man so weary ? 

Do you know me, sir ? Am I Dromio? Am I your man ? Am 
I my self $ 

Is he the Gool of the Jews only ? Is he not also of the Gentiles ? 

Am I not an Apostle ? Am I not free ? Have I not seen Jesus 
Christ our Lord ? Are not ye my work in the Lord ? 

Have ye not known ? Have ye not heard ? Hath it not been 
told you from the beginning ? Have ye not understood from the 
foundation of the world ? 

Are all apostles ? Are all prophets ? Are all teachers ? Are 
all workers of miracles ? Have all the gifts of healing ? Do . all 
speak with tongues ? Do all interpret ? 

Shy. Three thousand ducats : well. 

Bass. Ay, sir, for three months. 

Shy. For three months : well. 

Bass. For the which, I told you, Antonio shall be bound. 

Shy. Antonio shall become bound : well. 

Bass. May you stead me ? Will you pleasure me ? Shall I 
know your answer $ 

Art thou bound to a wife ? Seek not to be loosed. Art thou 
loosed from a wife ? Seek not a wife. 

The greatest elegance in the delivery of the answers to the questions in most of the exam- 
ples which occur in the succeeding form, may be secured by treating each (answer) as an 
indirect interrogative, and delivering each with a waving slide except the last : the last like a 
Bimple declarative. (See Rule IV. Exception.) 

What would content you? Talent? No. Enterprise? No. 

* Dirty, bewrayed. 



128 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

Courage ? No. Virtue ? No. The men whom you would select, 
should possess, not one, but all of these. 

Are they Hebrews ? So am I. Are they Israelites ? So am I. 
Are they the seed of Abraham ? So am I. Are they the ministers 
of Christ ? I am more. 

I am the king ; for so stands the comparison : thou the beggar; 
for so witnesseth thy lowliness : shall I command thy love ? I 
may. Shall I enforce thy love ? I could. Shall I entreat thy 
love ? I will. 

Oh how hast thou with jealousy infected 

The sweetness of affiance ! Show men dutiful? 

Why so didst thou. Or seem they grave and learned ? 

Why so didst thou. Come they of noble family ? 

Why so didst thou. Seem they religious ? 

Why so didst thou. 

Are you ignorant of many things ? The Gospel offers you in- 
struction. Have you deviated from the path of duty ? The Gospel 
offers you forgiveness. Do temptations surround you ? The Gospel 
offers you the aid of heaven. Are you exposed to misery ? It 
consoles you. Are you subject to death ? It offers you immortality. 

Do you plead the unavoidable consequences of illustrious descent ? 
You know some who, with a name still more distinguished than 
your own, impart sanctity to splendor. Do you plead the vivacity 
of your years ? Every day will show you some who, in the bloom 
of youth, and with all the talents suited to this world, have their 
minds supremely bent on heaven. Is it the distraction of business ? 
You may see those engaged in the same cares with yourself, who, 
notwithstanding, make salvation their principal concern. Is pleas- 
ure your delight ? Pleasure is the first desire of all men, and of 
the righteous ; in some of whom it is even stronger, and whose 
natural dispositions are less favorable to virtue, than your own. 
Do you plead your afflictions ? There are some good men dis- 
tressed. Or prosperity ? There are those to be met with, who, 
amid their abundance, devote themselves to God. Or the state of 
your health ? You discover some who, in sickly bodies, possess 
souls filled with divine fortitude. 

Leonato, stand I here ? 
Is this the prince ? Is this the prince's brother ? 
Is this face Hero's ? Are our eyes our own ? 

Art thou ambitious ? Why then make the worm 
Thine equal ? Runs thy taste of pleasure high ? 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 129 

Why patronize sure death of every joy ? 

Charm Riches ? Why choose beggary in the grave, 

Of every hope a bankrupt and forever ? 



2. THE INDEFINITE INTERROGATIVE. 

Rule III. Simple indefinite interrogative sentences are delivered 
with accentual sweeps, o*r the upper emphatic sweep, to the em- 
phatic word, and the falling slide from it to the close. [See Plate, 
Fig. 7, a. b. c. d.) 

If the question is not very energetic, accentual sweeps should precede the emphasis : on the 
contrary, if the question has energy, and especially, if it has unusual energy the emphatic 
sweep should precede. With the former the voice will proceed, of course, nearly on a level 
to the emphasis : with the latter move upward to it ; and the higher it ascends to reach the 
emphatic word and begin the falling slide, the more earnest and energetic will the question 
be. 

Examples. 

Why? When? Where? Wherefore? How? Who? Which? 
What ? Whose ? Whom ? Wherein ? In which ? In whom ? 
In whose ? In what ? For which ? For whom ? For whose ? 
For what ? Through which ? By whom ? In relation to what ? 
In consequence of whose ? With respect to which ? Why so ? 
Where then ? Where am I ? What will you do ? Who told you 
that ? Who touched me ? How can he succeed ? Who then 
can be saved ? In what can I serve you ? Whom will you con- 
sult ? To what purpose is this waste ? When will he arrive 
there ? Which of these pictures do you prefer ? How long will 
you continue abroad ? What shall be the sign of his coming ? 
Why are all the works of nature so perfect ? Why, on the con- 
trary, are the works of man so imperfect ? How then can the 
Scriptures be fulfilled ? Which is the great commandment in the 
law ? Who can forgive sins but God only ? Why reason ye- 
these things in your hearts ? How then will ye know all parables? 
What think ye ? Why doth this man thus speak blasphemies ? 
What shall we do to inherit eternal life ? Where are you going ? 
From whence hath this man these things ? Why troublest thou 
the master any further ? Who hath warned you to flee from the 
wrath to come ? To what shall I liken the men of this genera- 
tion ? Where is the promised fruit of all his toils ? Whence can 
a man satisfy these men with bread here in the wilderness ? In 
which way shall I extricate myself ? By whom was this extraor- 
dinary work of art executed ? Where shall I eat the passover 
with my disciples? What were the unpleasant circumstances 
spoken of ? How is it possible in such a case to be impressed by 
the solemnity of the divine admonitions? What foreigner is 



130 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

sufficiently versed in the English language to discover the excel- 
lences of Shakspeare ? Why was he displeased with your con- 
duct on the occasion referred to in your interesting letter to me of 
last Thursday morning ? Who is this £ How is it to be recon- 
ciled to common sense ? To whom is it addressed V To what 
interest does it appeal ? What have we in this ode ? Wherein 
lies the difference between these two men ? 

What are the riches of Mexico's mines 

To the riches far down in the deep waters shining ? 

What terror can confound me, 

With God at my right hand ? 

But who the wonders of his hand can trace 

Through the dread ocean of unfathomed space ? 

Then why to these rude scenes repair, 

Of shades the solitary guest I 

Where then, ah, where shall poverty reside, 

To 'scape the pressure of contiguous pride £ 

What dost thou mean by shaking of thy head ? — 

What means that hand upon that breast of thine ? — 

Why holds thine eye that lamentable rheum, 

Like a proud river peering o'er its bounds ? 

What dotage will not vanity maintain £ — 

What web too weak to catch a modern brain ? 

Why weeps the muse of England ? — what appears 

In England's case, to move the muse to tears ? 

The interrogative character of what is usually called ' expletive ' icAy, has been already 
alluded to in the Classification ; where it was also intimated that it has a twofold delivery. 
In the examples which I subjoin, it should be delivered in conformity to the ride ; but with 
the shortest possible falling slide : merely, if I may so speak, with a downward intimation. 

Why, what evil hath he done ? 

Charles. And what may that be ? 

Perm. Why, I depend upon themselves, &c. &c. 

Perm. What right hast thou to their lands ? 

CJiarles. Why, the right of discovery, to be sure ; &c. 

Perm. A kind of strange right, indeed. Now suppose, friend 
Charles, that some canoe loads of these Indians, crossing the sea 
and discovering thy island of Great Britain, were to claim it as 
their own, and set it up for sale over thy head ; what wouldst thou 
think of it ? 

Charles. Why, — why, — why, — I must confess, I should think 
it a piece of impudence in them. 

Hoh. Your patriot care, sir, would redress all wrongs 

That spring from harsh restraints of law and justice : 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND) CLOSES APPLIED. 131 

Your virtue prompts you to make war on tyrants 
And like another Brutus free your country. 
Alas. Why, if there were some slanderous tool of state, 
Some taunting", dull, unmannered deputy, 
Some district despot prompt to play the Tarquin, 
By Heaven ! I well could act the Roman part, 
And strike the brutal tyrant to the earth. 

Siv. Here 's rich poverty 

Though wrapped in rags : my fifty brave companions, 
Who through the force of fifteen thousand foes, 
Bore off their king, and saved his great remains. 

Gust. Why, Captain, 

We could but die alone ; with these we conquer. 

The first of these examples is equivalent to, " Why so $"' The next three are respectively 
equivalent to the question, " Why should you ask 5" or " Why ask ? " The fourth to, " Why 
should it be concealed V or " Why deny it 5" and the fifth to, " Why make such a fuss aboui 
it, Captain 5" 

When a circumstance follows an indefinite interrogative, it is delivered with a continuation 
of the same falling slide ; as, 

Who was it ? said the unhappy man to his friend. 

An exception to this occurs, when the interrogative is followed by a compellative. The 
circumstance is then delivered with the rising slide ; to which the bend, with which the com- 
pellative terminates, has a decisive tendency ; as, 

Who was it, William ? said the unhappy man to his friend. 

The compellative, however, has no influence when the question is one of a very energetic 
character. {See Rule below for the delivery of compellative exclamatory sentences : Exception.) 

Exception to the Rule. When a simple indefinite is repeated 
to obtain a more distinct answer, or when another simple indefinite 
is put as if to obtain a repetition of a previous remark or question, 
it is delivered with the rising slide. (See Plate, Fig. 3.) Such 
repetitions only or mainly occur in conversation or dialogue. 

Examples. 

When will you finish my picture ? Next week. When will you 
finish my picture? Next week. 

Falstaff. A plague on all cowards, say I. 

Prince H. What's the matter ? 

Pal. What's the matter ? Here be four of us have taken a thou- 
sand pounds this morning. 

Prince H. Where is it, Jack ? Where is it ? 

Pal. Where is it ? taken from us, it is. 

Br. W. Hark you, fellow ; whom do you live with ? 

T. O'K. Whom do I live with ? Why, with my mistress to be 
sure. 

Dr. W. And pray, sir, how long have you lived with her ladyship ? 

T. O'K. How long ? Ever since the day she hired me. 



132 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

Bowl. Well, then, away goes old Jack to the hospital. 

Capt. What's that you say ? &c. &c. 

Douglass. Percy : knowest thou that name ? 

Baby. How? What of Percy? 

What is he ? What ? Touchpaper, to be sure. 

Why did I do that ? Why ? Because of wrongs, 
Deep, bitter wrongs, which they had done me. 

Why, why, I will tell you. 

By comparing the last two of these examples, the student may perceive how it is that "ex- 
pletive" why may often have a delivery different from that above under the rule. 

f 

3. THE INDIRECT INTERROGATIVE. 

Rule IV. The simple indirect interrogative is delivered with 
the waving slide ; that is to say, with the upper sweep to the em- 
phatic word and the lower sweep from it. (See Plate, Fig. 2, e.f.) 

As this slide is the most difficult to execute with ease and grace, no pains should be spared 
to acquire a perfect command of it. The student should, therefore, be detained by the ex- 
amples below until every one of them can be delivered at a glance with precision. 

It should be remembered that the sweeps are developed relatively to the position of the 
emphatic word. If it be the first word, and in proportion to its approximation to the first 
word, the upper sweep is curtailed : if the last, &.C., the lower. D' the sentence consists of a 
single word, the slide is reduced to a simple circumflex. 

No pains should be spared to acquire the proper delivery of this sentence : not more for the 
sake of propriety of utterance, than for its connection with emphasis, and its salutary influ- 
ence on the voice. 

1. Examples of the first kind. 

He f She f It f We f You f They f His f Ours f Theirs f 
Yours f Both f He went f They fell f So she came f The flock 
rose on the wing then f You overcame him in the struggle f The 
company saw it f They were gone on your arrival f Hoped for it f 
Met them f All were carried off f Without notice all this was done f 
He did not deny his share in the unhappy transaction f To strike 
your toe with a tight shoe on, then, rather disturbs your equanimity, 
my good friend f It was expected of him on that occasion last year f 
He never recovered, notwithstanding the most skilful medical as- 
sistance, from the effects of that fall from his horse last winter f 

Orlando. I pray you, mar no more of my verses with reading 
them ill-favoredly. 

Jaq. Rosalind is your love's name f 
Orl. Yes, just. 

Capt. Give it here, my honest fellow. 
Bowl. You will take it f 
Capt. To be sure I will. 
Bowl. And will smoke it f 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 133 

Capt. That I will. (Feeling in his pocket.) 

Bowl. And will not think of giving me any thing in return f 

Capt. ( Withdrawing his hand from his pocket?) No : no : you 
are right. 
And. You live here, sir f 
Mark. Yes, sir. 

And. You know Mr. Brown, living the other side of the way f 
Mark. I do, sir. 
And. He is at home now f 
Mark. No ; he left yesterday for Bath. 
And. He did not take Emily with him f 
Mark. No. 

And. She is at home, then f 

Mark. Before I answer any more of your questions, sir, I should 
like to know who you are. 

Exceptions. The last member of a series of simple indirect in- 
terrogatives, requires the delivery of a simple declarative sentence. 

In some cases I am inclined to believe all the members after the first may be delivered thus 
with propriety. 

Examples. 

My dear, you have some pretty beads there f Yes, papa. And 
you seem to be vastly pleased with them f Yes, papa. 

Dr. You are not a glutton, sir f 

Pat. God forbid ! sir : I'm one of the plainest men living in the 
west. 

Dr. Then, perhaps, you are a drunkard f 

Dr. You take a little pudding, then f 

Pat. Yes. 

Dr. And afterwards some cheese f 

Pat. Yes. 

Dr. You west-country people generally take a glass of Highland 
whiskey after dinner f 

Pat. Yes, we do. 

2. Examples of the second kind. 

Dear Queen, give me that hand of yours to kiss f Grant me per- 
mission to go there this once f Mother, let me stay with you at 
home to-day f Forgive me for trespassing upon you f Tell me 
the way to the city f Jesus, Master, have mercy on us f Give us 
this day our daily bread f 

Note. This kind of indirect, as well as that which follows, is very unusual in books ; though 
the latter is more frequently found than the former ; but both occur ; and the few examples given 
will enable the student to understand their nature. In conversation, they occur perhaps as 
often as any other. 

12 



134 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

3. Examples of the third kind. 

Surely you are mistaken in that supposition f Surely the Lord 
is in this place f They will surely reverence my son f Certainly 
he, at least, complained of such conduct f He undoubtedly entered 
a protest against their measures I You surely cannot be ignorant 
of the consequences f Unquestionably it was a hard case f Truly 
this was the Son of God f Surely thou wilt slay the wicked f 

The definite interrogative often follows the indirect in colloquial pieces and in conversation ; as, 

You will go there £ will you not ? 

He was not intoxicated at the time f was he ? 

When this is the case, the definite interrogative sometimes requires the falling slide ; or the 
delivery of Rule III ; as, 

You didn't do it f did you ? 

She does not know every thing f does she ? 

This delivery is explained by the supposition that the indirect is a colloquial substitute for a 
definite interrogative ; and that the definite is a repetition of this ; and consequently is delivered 
according to Rule II, Exception 1 ; as, 

Did you do it ? Did you do it ? 

Does she know every thing ? Does she know every thing ? 

When a circumstance follows an indirect interrogative, it is delivered with a continuation of 
the same slide ; as, 

Then you never knew the history of the young man f said the 
other to him. 

MISCELLANEOUS EXAMPLES OF SIMPLE INTERROGATIVE SENTENCES. 

What shall I do with my doublet ? What did he ? What said 
he ? How looked he ? Wherein went he ? What makes he here ? 
Did he ask for me ? How parted he with thee ? When shalt thou 
see him again? 

Who came ? The king. Why did he come ? To see. Why 
did he see ? To overcome. To whom came he ? To the beggar. 
What saw he ? The beggar. Who overcame he ? The beggar. 
The conclusion is victory. On whose side V The king's. The 
captive is enriched. On whose side ? The beggar's. The catas- 
trophe is a nuptial. On whose side ? The king's ? [No, on both 
in one.] I am the king. Thou art the beggar. Shall I command 
thy love ? I may. Shall I enforce thy love ? I could. Shall I 
entreat thy love ? I will. What shalt thou exchange for rags ? 
Robes. 

What sayest thou ? What ? Is she pleased ? — You saw my 
master wink upon you f Stands Scotland in its place ? Who 
comes there ? Do you mark that ? Shall I doubt his disposition to 
approve of the enterprise ? 

No pleasure ? Are domestic comforts dead ? 
Are all the nameless sweets of friendship fled ? 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 135 

No pleasure ? Has some sickly eastern waste 
Sent us a wind to parch us at a blast ? — 
Can British Paradise no scenes afford 
To please ? 

Are sweet philosophy's enjoyments run 
Quite to the lees ? — And has religion none ? 
Then you never knew the history of the young man f What 
have you to advance against this charge ? Will you deny it ? By 
what name shall I call you ? Shall I call you soldiers ? What 
did the British lion do ? Did he whet his tusks ? Did he bristle 
up ? Did he shake his mane ? Did he roar ? What power shall 
blanch the sullied snow of character ? Can there be an injury 
more deadly ? Can there be a crime more cruel ? He did, ay f 
Did what ? 

Who leads the British senate ? A protestant Irishman. Who 
guides the British arms ? A protestant Irishman. Why, then, is 
Catholic Ireland, with her quintuple population, stationary ? Have 
physical causes neutralized its energies ? Has the religion of Christ 
stupified its intellect ? Has the God of mankind become the parti- 
san of monopoly ? Has he put an interdict on its advancement ? 

How then ? Can honor set a leg ? No. Or an arm ? No. 
Or take away the grief of a wound ? No. Honor hath no skill in 
surgery, then f No. What is honor ? A word. What is in that 
word, honor? What is that honor? Air. Who hath it? He 
that died on Wednesday. Doth he feel it ? No. Doth he hear 
it? No. Is it insensible, then? Yes, to the dead. But will it 
not live with the living ? No. Why ? Detraction will not suffer it. 
Can this man have been a prince in Africa ? said I to myself. 
But is this absolutely necessary ? But is this absolutely necessary ? 
said he, repeating the question. 

[Sisters and brothers, little maid,] 

How many may you be ? 
How many ? [seven in all, she said, 
And wondering looked at me.] 
Whence this magic of thy mind ? — 

Why thrills thy music on the springs of thought ? — 
Why, at thy pencil's touch refined, 

Starts into life the glowing draught ? 
Are we in life through one great error led ? — 
Is each man perjured ? — Is each nymph betrayed ? — 
Of the superior sex art thou the worst ? — 
Am I of mine the most completely curst ? 
He would not receive you f He gave you no intimation of good 
will f Is not this the son of Joseph ? What went ye out in the 



136 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

"wilderness to see ? A reed shaken by the wind ? But what went ye 
out to see ? A man clothed in soft raiment ? But what went ye 
out to see ? A prophet ? By what authority doest thou these 
things ? Who gave thee this authority to do these things ? Hear- 
est thou ? Why then did ye not believe on him ? For what pur- 
pose did the infinite Creator give existence to this majestic monu- 
ment of his almighty power V Was it not to communicate happi- 
ness ? Is he not infinitely good ? 

Have any alarms been occasioned by the emancipation of our 
Catholic brethren? Has the bigoted malignity of any individual 
been crushed ? Do you wish to prepare then for the revocation 
of these improvident concessions ? Whence that doubt ? exclaimed 
Morton. You do not suppose it entirely unfounded f What do 
you say to this ? What ? Are you mad ? How ? Will you 
persist ? When will this farce terminate ? When ? * 

Is any among you afflicted ? Let him pray. Is any merry ? 
Let him sing psalms. Is any sick among you ? Let him send for 
the elders of the church. 

Why throw away a needful day 
To go in search of yarrow ? 
terror ! What hath she perceived ? joy ! 

What doth she look on ? — Whom doth she behold ?— 
Her hero slain upon the beach of Troy ? — 
His vital presence ? — His corporeal mould ? 
What could he do, 
Thus daily thirsting, in that lonesome life, 
With blind endeavors ? 

May I name 
Without offence, that fair-faced cottage-boy ? 
Are they not mainly outward ministers 
Of inward conscience ? 
Grain shall I call it ? Grain of what ?— For whom ? 
What could she perform 
To shake the burden off? 

Can the mother thrive 
By the destruction of her innocent sons ? 



CLASS III. SIMPLE EXCLAMATORY SENTENCES. 

Rule V. Simple exclamatory sentences are delivered like the 
corresponding declarative and interrogative sentences from which 
they are derived ; except that they express additionally the pecu- 
liar effects of the emotions or passions. 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 137 

These peculiar effects are perceived in the intonation, not at all in the general direction, of 
the voice. For example : the slide in the definite interrogative exclamation is precisely 
the same in all respects as in the definite interrogative. The voice proceeds through the 
same succession of tones, in the same direction, and to the same limits ; but in the exclama- 
tion the succession of tones begins at a lower or higher pitch, succeed each other more slowly 
or rapidly, are tremulous or firm, soft or harsh, gentle or violent, &c, according to the nature 
of the emotion or passion which they are employed to express. These modifications of tone, 
force, pitch and rate, I need scarcely say, can be taught only by nature. 

There is, I believe, but one exception to the rule : this will be noticed under the head of 
equivalent spontaneous exclamations.* 



I. SIMPLE DECLARATIVE EXCLAMATORY SENTENCES. {RuU 1.) 

Examples. 

Live ! Die ! Be gone ! Away ! Strike ! Make haste ! Re- 
tire ! Pursue them ! May he live ! Scorn to be slaves ! Forget 
not your fathers ! Forbid it ! Welcome to our shores ! Be ye 
blotted from my mind forever ! He is fallen ! The foe is gone ! 
We meet again this night ! They are gone together ! That was 
well ! So said the spectre ! I appeal to history ! The war is 
actually begun ! The throne is in danger ! Talk of hypocrisy after 
this ! She murmured in a hollow voice ! I shudder to see thee 
approach my couch ! Never shall they return ! The serenest 
beam of your glory is extinguished in the tomb ! Pour into their 
hearts the spirit of departed heroes ! There stands the mighty 
Mansfield ! Our brethren are already in the field ! May my 
tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth ! May I be the last victim 
sacrificed to the furious spirit of party ! God grant to those few 
friends courage to declare themselves in opposition to your formi- 
dable enemies ! 

My flesh trembles at the prospect ! Behold the French Demos- 
thenes ! Look on this massive wedge of gold ! That soldier is a 
man ! It is the shriek of America ! Washington is no more ! 
The sky is changed ! Sin not against thy God ! It was the night 
of the soul ! My mind was wrapped in impenetrable gloom ! My 
eyelids seemed pressed downward with an invincible burden ! 
My eyeballs were ready to burst from their sockets ! The whole 
endless night seemed filled with one appalling idea ! Think on 
my chains ! Let not the blood of heathen millions, in that hour, 
be found in our skirts ! All are now vanished ! I will paint the 
death-dew on his brow ! 

The shaft of fate 
Strikes the devoted victim to the ground ! 

* I am inclined, on a review of the text, to believe that there is another. I think I have 
heard the indefinite interrogative exclamatory, when expressive of sorrow, turn upward at the 
close, like the end of a waving slide, instead of continuing uninterruptedly downward, accord- 
ing to Rule HI ; as, 

Why do I suffer so many sorrows ! 

12* 



138 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

Lo ! unveiled 
The scene of those dark ages ! 

The starless grave shall shine 
The portal of eternal day ! 

Night the pall of gloom had thrown 
On Nature's still convexity ! 

Thus Switzerland again was free ! — 
Thus death made way for liberty ! 

The faithful watchman's cry 
Speaks a conflagration nigh ! 

It gives birth 
To sacred thought in souls of worth ! 

He lay, like a warrior taking his rest, 
With his martial cloak around him ! 

The call of each sword upon liberty's aid, 

Shall be written in gore on the steel of its blade ! 

A parent's curse light on the whole Gipsy race ! — 
They have bowed me almost to the grave ! 

Far along, 
From peak to peak, the rattling crags among, 
Leaps the live thunder ! 

Simple declarative exclamations often appear in a fragmentary form ; and when they so 
appear, they should be delivered precisely as they would be, if they were complete. Several 
examples are given at the beginning above ; but a more enlarged illustration here, will not, I 
presume, be thought impertinent. The examples subjoined, are, in several instances, neces- 
sarily interwoven with other sentences ; but they will be readily distinguished by the excla- 
mation point which succeeds. (See Classification, Simple Definite Interrogative Exclamation, 
Note.) 

Examples. 

Go! Beware! See! Stand! Run! Up! Hear! Make 
way! Hark! There! Here! He! She! Them! We! Ours! 
Yours ! 

Back ! back ! It is impossible ! — Hurt thee, darling ? No ! — 
How now ? A priest ! What means this most unwelcome visit ? 
— Not so ! Mercy on me ! — A trial of skill upon my child ? Im- 
possible ! — What is life V A shadow ! — There ! thus do I trample 
on the insolence of Gesler. — Well done ! — Thoughtless boy ! — The 
foe ! they come. 

All. Rest thee content. 

Theo. Content ! mockery of grief ! Content ! 
Oh, must we part forever ? Cruel fortune ! 
Wilt thou then tear him hence ? Severe divorce ! 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 139 

Deluded hopes ! — Oh worse than death. 

My friend destroyed ! — Oh piercing thought ! — 
Oh dismal chance ! — In my destruction ruined ! — 
In my sad fall undone ! 
Without the smile from partial beauty won, 
Oh what were man ? A world without a sun ! 

Under the head of simple declarative sentences, it was shown that a sentence, in conse- 
quence of defective construction or incorrect punctuation, is often apparently simple declara- 
tive, when in fact it is either a compound sentence or a simple indirect interrogative. The 
same is as often the case with simple declarative exclamations. 

Examples. 

1. Beware ! Think of thy chains. — 

2. In vain ! I must give o'er. 

In the first of these examples, the exclamation, instead of being simple, as it seems to be, is 
either the first member of a close, or the first part of a loose sentence. If treated as the for- 
mer, it should be delivered as if written and punctuated thus : Beware, and think of thy 
chains : if as the latter, thus : Beware : think of thy chains. 

The exclamation in the second example, is either the first part of a compact, or of a loose. 
If treated as compact, with both correlative words as— so, understood, it should be delivered 
as if written thus : In vain ; I must give o'er : if as a loose sentence, thus : It is in vain : I 
must give o'er. 

1. You are not all here ! Time and the sword have thinned 
your ranks. — 

2. Let him not faint ! Rack him till he revives. — 

3. I will not be dragged into the defence of my friend from Mis- 
souri ! The South shall not be forced into a conflict not its own. 
The gentleman from Missouri is able to fight his own battles. 

Example 1st, is a double compact, with the first and second proposition expressed. The 
exclamation, therefore, is not a simple sentence. 

Example 2d, is a double compact, with the first and third proposition expressed. 

Example 3d, is a double compact, with the first and second proposition expressed : the first 
having two members, of which the first only is pointed as an exclamation. All these ex- 
clamations seem to be simple sentences. 

1. 'Twas so ! But it is vanished : gone. 

2. Rienzi. Ye dare not 

Ask for mercy now. 
Sav. Yet he is noble ! 

Let him not die a felon's death. 

3. Cat. Would you destroy ? 
Aur. Were I a thunderbolt ! 

Rome's ship is rotten : 
Has she not cast you out ; &c. ? 

4. Ram. 'Tis very strange ! 

Hor. As I do live, my honored lord, 'tis true ; 
And we did think it writ down in our duty, 
To let you know it. 



140 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

The exclamation in the first example is the first part of a single compact, followed by the 
second part. The exclamation represents the comma, thus: "It was so indeed, but it is 
vanished: gone." 

The exclamation in the second is the first part of a single compact indirect semi-interroga- 
tive exclamation with both the correlative words understood. If complete it would read 
thus: Yet because he is noble, therefore let him not die a felon's death! The interrogative 
portion is the second kind of indirect: that used in supplication. 

The exclamation in the third example is the first part of a single compact, with the second 
part understood, thus : If I were a thunderbolt, then I would destroy. 

In the fourth and last example, the exclamation is a simple indirect interrogative : having 
the reply partly understood, thus : 

Ham. 'Tis very strange ! 

Hor. Yes, indeed, but as I do live, my honored lord, 'tis true ; &c. 



II. INTERROGATIVE EXCLAMATORY SENTENCES. 
1. THE DEFINITE INTERROGATIVE EXCLAMATORY. (Rule II.) 

Examples. 
Art thou my father ! Is he dead ! Was it not terrible ! Are 
such things possible ! Darest thou thus provoke me, insolent ! 
Could he think of it in those circumstances ! Has it come to this ! 
Were they infatuated ! Am I, with undoubted right on my side, 
to be thus despoiled ! Will this unhappy contest, already quite 
too protracted for the reputation of the parties, never come to an 
end ! Can it be possible ! Is that little insignificant creature the 
cause of all this turmoil ! 

This sentence appears for the most part in fragments. 1 subjoin numerous examples. 
They are delivered precisely a$ when complete. 

Examples. 
Liberty ! It is for noble minds. — I am charged with being an 
emissary of France. An emissary of France ! — Sell my country's 
independence to France ! And for what ? — Not inferior to this 
was the wisdom of him who resolved to shear the wolf. Shear a 
wolf ! — As their parents are, so are they destined to become. 
Destined ! — Is a man possessed of talents adequate to the occa- 
sion ? Adequate ! — To send forth the merciless cannibal thirsting 
for blood ! Against whom ? 

Mr. H. And why were they overworked, pray ? 

Stew. To carry water, sir. 

Mr. H. To carry water ! And what were they carrying water 
for? 

Stew. Sure, sir, to put out the fire. 

Mr. IT. Fire ! What fire ? 

Stew. Oh, sir, your father's house is burned down to the ground. 

Mr. H. My father's house burned down ! And how came it 
set on fire 1 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 141 

Stew, I think, sir, it must have been the torches. 

Mr. H. Torches ! What torches ? 

Stew. At your mother's funeral. 

Mr. H. My mother dead ! 

Thou here ! And have not prison gloom 
And taunting foes, and threatened doom 
Obscured thy courage yet ? 

2. THE INDEFINITE INTERROGATIVE EXCLAMATORY. (Rule III) 

Examples. 
What sounds these are ! What a scene is this ! How beauti- 
ful it appears ! How he glares ! What an honorable testimony 
this from a vanquished adversary ! What a noble idea doth it 
give of that wonderful orator's action ! With what force, in par- 
ticular, does he maintain the doctrines of grace ! With what feel- 
ings must an intelligent heathen approach his final catastrophe ! 
Oh why am I thus ! Where could my thoughts have been ! 
How wretched the condition of that infatuated man ! How pleas- 
ing is the prospect ! What a deal of pains for little profit ! How 
great the command over his passions ! What an affecting grace- 
fulness in his instructions ! 

Who ever thought 
In such a homely piece of stuff, to see 
The mighty senate's tool ! 

What bare-faced shifting ! — 

Fragmentary indefinite exclamations are common ; but there is too little variety in them to 
require much illustration. 

Examples. 
Who^I When! What! Where! Which! Why !— For what ! 
A mess of pottage. — How ! To whom ! How beautiful ! What 
greatness of conception ! How pale ! What impertinence ! How 
shameful ! What a spectacle ! 

Simple indefinite exclamations, like simple indefinite interrogatives, frequently call for a 
repetition of a previous declaration or question either not understood, or of such an extraor- 
dinary character as to appeal- improbable if literally understood ; in which case their delivery 
is in like manner reversed ; that is to say, instead of taking the falling slide, they take the 
rising. (See Indefinite Interrogative.) 

Generally, however, such exclamations consist merely of interrogative pronouns and ad- 
verbs, as, for the most part, in the examples subjoined. 

Examples. 
How ! Will you suffer your glory to be sullied ? — What ! Shall 
we be told that the exasperated feelings of a people were excited ? 



142 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

— What motive, then, could have such influence in their bosom ? 
What motive ! That which nature, the common parent, plants in 
the bosom of men. — Not inferior to this was the wisdom of him 
who resolved to shear a wolf. What ! Shear a wolf ? 

But how, and by what means ? 
What ! Not a word ! I ask you once again. 

How ! Leap into the pit our life to save ? 
To save our life, leap all into the grave ? 

When ! Why, yesterday, 
When all the world were out to play. 

3. THE INDIRECT INTERROGATIVE EXCLAMATORY. (Rule IV.) 

1. Examples of the first kind. 

You will not go there ! He was not a hypocrite ! Then we shall 
not see him pass by with chains on his legs ! He went ! Thou wert 
unarmed ! Thou hearest him deny the atrocious deed ! t You have 
not read it, then ! Thou art not wont to join in idle tales ! You 
never met the like but once ! You did not see him, then ! They 
were all present in that hour ! Ye will not murder him ! Then saw 
you not his face ! You would not screen a traitor from the law ! 
Thou wouldst not have me make a trial of my skill upon my child ! 
You witnessed the horrid spectacle ! They saw nothing in that 
transaction to disgrace them forever ! You left them on the verge 
of the precipice ! 

These sentences, like the interrogatives from which they are derived, are often fragmentary; 
and when so employed, it is difficult to distinguish them from simple declarative and simple 
definite interrogative exclamations. If, however, the emotion be either purely or in part that 
of contempt, scorn or disgust, the fragment, it is pretty certain, is indirect, and should be de- 
livered with the waving slide. 

Examples. 

Thou wear a lion's hide ! doff it for shame, 
And hang a calf-skin on those recreant limbs. 

Wal. Alasco, this is wild and mutinous : 

An outrage, marking deep and settled spleen 
To just authority. 

Alas. Authority ! 

Show me authority in honor's garb, 
And I will down upon the humblest knee 
That ever homage bent to sovereign sway. 

Val. Indeed, when you turned justice into rigor, 
And even that rigor was pursued with fury, 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 143 

We undertook to mediate for the queen, 

And hoped to moderate 

Van. To moderate ! 

What would you moderate ? My indignation ? 

To mediate for the queen ! — You undertook ! — 

Wherein concerned it you ? 
Val. Did not the Romans civilize you ? 
Van. No. 

Val. We found you naked. 
Van. And you found us free. 

Val. Would you be temperate once and hear me out — 
Van. Speak things that honest men may hear with temper : 

Speak the plain truth and varnish not your crimes. 

Say that you once were virtuous : long ago 

A frugal, hardy people, like the Britons, 

Before you grew thus elegant in vice, 

And gave your luxuries the name of virtues. 

The civilizers ! — the disturbers, say : 

The robbers : the corrupters of mankind. 



2. Examples of the second kind. 

Spare him ! Grant me this favor for once ! Let me not perish in 
this horrid manner ! Let me live ! Give us this day our daily bread ! 
For heaven's sake, permit me to go with you ! 

The rare occurrence of this exclamation, in books, must be my apology for so few examples, 
The interrogative is very scarce, but the exclamation is still more so. 



3. Examples of the third kind. 

You are surely mistaken in that supposition ! She will certainly 
get lost in this wilderness of streets ! You surely will not deprive 
me of my only pleasure in life ! Verily, it is a wonderful thing ! 
Surely I have seen you in very different circumstances ! Surely it 
is unnecessary for a man to make a fool of himself to pass for a 
man of fashion 1 

How is this, my father ? 
You are not angry, sure ! What have I done ? 



III. COMPELLATIVE EXCLAMATORY SENTENCES. 

Compellative exclamations, being imperfect divisions, strictly 
speaking, of declarative sentences, form no exception to the rule 
that exclamatory sentences are delivered like the corresponding 



144 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

declarative and interrogative from which they are derived. Pecu- 
culiarities, however, they have, which deserve attention. 

1. Whether they occur at the beginning, in the middle, or at the 
end of perfect sense, they should always, with an exception to be 
noticed in the proper place, terminate with the bend. Ordinary 
divisions of imperfect sense at the end of perfect sense, terminate 
with partial or perfect close. 

2. They are often repeated : sometimes for the purpose of being 
heard and sometimes not. When repeated for the purpose of 
being heard, the repetition is delivered with perfect close ; and 
every succeeding repetition is delivered in the same manner, but 
with increased force : when repeated, but not for the purpose of 
being heard, the repetition, or the last of the series of repetition, 
is delivered with the circumflex. 

Examples. 
1. Of simple compellatives not repeated. 

Gentlemen'', I rise to address you on one of the most interesting 
subjects that can engage the human mind. 

Ladies 7 , the consequence of such a step on your fame and hap- 
piness would be too serious to be lightly incurred. 

Wives 7 , submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto 
the Lord. 

Husbands 7 , love your wives, even as Christ also loved the Church. 

Children 7 , obey your parents in the Lord ; for this is right. 

Servants 7 , be obedient to them that are your masters according 
to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of heart, as 
unto Christ. 

When I came here, my friends 7 , I little expected to behold a 
scene like this. 

I perceive, conscript fathers 7 , that every look, that every eye, is 
fixed on me. 

Long since, Cataline 7 ! ought the consul to have doomed thy life 
a forfeit to thy country. 

As to the wealth, Mr. Speaker, which the colonies have drawn 
from the sea by their fisheries, you had all that matter opened at 
the bar. 

To form a just estimate of Caesar's aims, Mr. President, look to 
his triumphs after the surrender of Utica. 

You are a fool\ Harry 7 .* Your senses leave you v , Caius 7 ! Give 

* It is very important to observe, that the compellative is the only reason for the turning 
of the voice upward at the end of these sentences. Without it, they properly end with the 
perfect close. 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES aWd CLOSES APPLIED. 145 

me answer^, Drusus'! Good morning\ uncle'. Good morning\ 
little man'. Stay thee\ Saladin! Read here, young Arthur! 
How now, foolish rheum ! 

Yes, land of liberty'! thy children have no cause to blush for 
thee. 

Haughty lord ! 
Think not I stoop to deprecate your wrath. 
Unhappy youth ! 
Art thou a sufferer too from that same fight ? 

Bright angels ! strike your loudest strings : 

Your sweetest voices raise : 
Let heaven and all created things 

Sound our Immanuel's praise. 
Arise, King of grace, arise, 

And enter to thy rest : 
Lo ! thy church waits with longing eyes, 

Thus to be owned and blessed. 

Here, mighty God, accept our vows : 

Here let thy praise be spread : 
Bless the provision of thy house, 

And fill thy poor with bread. 

For heaven's sake, Hubert, let me not be bound ! 
Nay, hear me, Hubert ! drive these men away. 
Are you sick, Hubert ? You look pale to-day. 

How now, Rodrigo ? 
I pray you, after the lieutenant : go. 

Mon. What's the matter, lieutenant ? 
Cas. A knave ! — teach me my cluty. 

I'll beat the knave into a twiggin bottle. 
Des. Let me find a charter in your voice 

To assist my simpleness. 
Duke. What would you, Desdemona ? 

Bra. Come hither, Moor. 

I here do give thee that with all my heart 

Which, but thou hast already, with all my heart 

I would keep from thee. — For your sake, jewel, 

I am glad at soul I have no other child ; 

For thy escape would teach me tyranny, 

To hang clogs on them. — I have done, my lord. 

Exception. Single compellatives, when at the end of very 
emphatic declarative or indefinite interrogative sentences, or their 

13 



146 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

derivative exclamations, conform to the delivery of those sen- 
tences ; that is, submit to the partial or perfect close of the one, 
or the falling slide of the other : e. g. 

Get thee behind me, Satan\ Hence ! home ! ye idle creatures'. 
This is all idle : there are deeds to do : 
Arouse thee, Procida' ! 

Charge, Chester' ! Charge ! On ! Stanley' ! On ! 
Were the last words of Marmion. 

Love. Get along, you impudent villain'! 

James. Nay, sir, you said you wouldn't be angry. 

Love. Get out, you dog v ! you 

Why tempt ye me, ye hypocrites v ! 

2. Of simple compellatives repeated. 
1. For the purpose of being heard. 

John 7 , John' ! Mr. Speaker 7 , Mr. Speaker' ! Fellow-citizens 7 , 
fellow- citizens' ! Lord 7 , Lord' ! open unto us. Macbeth 7 , Macbeth', 
Macbeth' ! beware Macduff ! 

Oh, mother 7 , mother v , do not jest 
On such a theme as this. 

Emil. [Within^] My lord 7 , my lord' ! what! ho! my lord 7 , my 
lord' ! 

Oth. What noise is this S. — Not dead ?~ Not yet quite dead ? 
I, that am cruel, am yet merciful : 
I would not have thee linger in thy pain. — 
So: so. 

Emil. What ! ho ! my lord, my lord ! 

Oth. Who's there ? 

Emil. good my lord, I would speak a word with you. 

Ham. Hold off thy hand. 

King. Pluck them asunder. 

Queen. Hamlet, Hamlet! 

All. Gentlemen, 

Hor. Good my lord, be quiet. 

Help me, Lysander !* help me ! do thy best 
To pluck this crawling serpent from my breast ! 
Ah me, for pity ! What a dream was here ! 

* This should be delivered like the exceptions above. The lady being asleep at this point, ia 
not supposed to recollect that she has called on Lysander here. Hence repetition does not 
begin until the seventh line, and third Lysander 



I 
THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 147 

Lysander, look how I do quake and fear. 
Methought a serpent ate my heart away, 
And you sat smiling at his cruel prey. 
Lysander ! what ! removed ? Lysander ! lord I* 
What ! out of hearing ? gone ? no sound, no word ? 

2. Repeated, but not for the purpose of being heard. 
Oh, my son Absalom! my son! my son Absalom'/ would to 
God I had died for thee, Absalom ! my son ! my son' ! 

Oh ! Raimond, Raymond' ! 
If it should be that I have wronged thee, say 
Thou dost forgive me. 

Cromwell, Cromwell', 
Had I but served my God with half the zeal 
I served my king, he would not in mine age 
Have left me naked to mine enemies. 

Oh monster, monster' ! 
The brute that tears the infant from its nurse, 
Is excellent to tnee, for in his form 
The impulse of his nature may be read ; 
But thou, so beautiful, so proud, so noble, — 
Oh, what a wretch art thou ! 

Beg. What ! did my father's godson seek your life ? 

He whom my father named ? Your Edgar ? 
Glo. lady, lady, Shame would have it hid ! 



IV. SPONTANEOUS EXCLAMATIONS. 
1. INVARIABLE SPONTANEOUS EXCLAMATIONS. 

These are all fragments of simple declarative sentences, and, of 
course, are delivered like simple declaratives. {See the Rule.) 

Examples. 

See there v ! behold* If bob ! lo !f 
If I stand here, I saw him ! 

And they bowed their knees before him, and mocked him : say- 
ing, Hair ! king of the Jews. 

* The word lord, being the equivalent of Lysander, is delivered as if it was Lysander ; that 
is, it being the second repetition, with increased force, but with perfect close. 

+ These two exclamations are of constant occurrence in the Scriptures : they should always 
be delivered in the manner here indicated. 



148 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

But previously I should have mentioned the very impolite be- 
havior of Mr. Burchell ; who, during this discourse, sate with his 
face turned to the fire, and at the conclusion of every sentence 
would cry out, Fudge ! an expression that displeased us all, and 
in some measure damped the rising spirit of the conversation. 

Tush x ! tush v ! son, said Cecropia : if you say you love, but withal 
you fear, you fear lest you should offend. 

Tut v ! man : one fire burns out another. 

And he said, tut x ! tut v ! tut x ! shaking his head three or four times. 

Rob. I'll make all happy : I'll lower all your rents. 

All. Huzza ! Long live lord Robin ! 

Rob. You shant pay no rent at all. 

All. HuzzaM huzzaM Long live lord Bobin ! 

Rob. I'll have no poor people in the parish, for I'll make them 
all rich ; I'll have no widows, for I'll marry them all ; I'll have no 
orphan children, for I'll father them all myself ; and if that's not 
doing as a lord should do, then I say I know nothing about the 
matter : that's all. 

All. HuzzaM huzzaM* 

Sir H. Upon my word, sir, you must beat me, or I will beat 
you : take your choice. 

Aid. S. Psha ! psha! you jest. 

Pris. Hem ! hem ! 

Witty. He's dry : he hems : on quickly. 

I am your lordship's most obsequious zounds ! what a 

peer of the realm ! 

Rosse. Let not your ears despise my tongue forever, 

Which shall possess them with the heaviest sound, 
That ever yet they heard. 
Macd. Humph ! I guess at it. 

Avaunt ! thou witch ! Come, Dromio : let us go. 
Mercy ! sir, how the folks will talk of it ! 
'Tis not his words that shake me thus — Pish ! 
James. Why, sir, since you will have it, then, they make a jest 
of you everywhere : nay, of your servants on your account. One 
says, you pick a quarrel with them quarterly, in order to find an 
excuse to pay them no wages. 
Love. Poh ! poh ! 

Fie ! daughter : fie ! when my old wife lived, upon 
This day, she was both pantler, butler, cook : 
Both dame and servant. 

* Hurrah, pronounced hooraw, is the same word, differently, but more correctly, 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND^ CLOSES APPLIED. 149 

Fie ! fie ! Gratiano ! Where are all the rest V 

Yes, forsooth, I will hold my tongue. So your face bids me, 
though you say nothing. Mum ! mum ! 

Hum ! hum ! And so there is no remedy f None ? None. 

Hum ! Is this a vision ? Is this a dream ? Do I sleep ? Master 
Ford, awake ! awake ! 

Slender. Whoo ! ho ! ho ! Father Page. 

Page. Son ! How now ? how now, son ? Have you de- 
spatched ? 

Stew. Help, ho ! murder ! help ! 

Kent. Strike, you slave : stand, rogue : stand : you neat slave, 
strike. 

Stew. Help, ho ! murder ! help ! 

Heigh ! sirs,- what a noise you make here. 

Heigh ! heigh ! what's the matter ? 

I do so : I confess it. Sir, a body would think this was well 
counterfeited : I pray you, tell your brother how well I counter- 
feited. — Heigh ho ! 

'Tis almost five o'clock, cousin : 'tis time you were ready : by 
my troth, I am exceeding ill : hey ho ! 

Hey-day ! What Hans Flutterkin is this ? What Dutchman 
does build or frame castles in the air ? 



2. VARIABLE SPONTANEOUS EXCLAMATIONS. 

These exclamations form the only exception to the general rule 
of delivery ; namely, that exclamatory sentences are delivered 
like the corresponding declarative and interrogative from which 
they are derived. Strictly speaking, indeed, even these are not 
exceptions ; since, to be exceptions, they should be derivatives, 
like other exclamations ; and this they are not. They spring di- 
rectly from the passions, as they are exclusively employed by the 
passions. 

Though I have enumerated them among sentences, it is only by 
courtesy that they can receive that title. In the classification, I 
have therefore denominated them equivalents ; i. e. of the declara- 
tive and different interrogative exclamations which have so far been 
noticed : a name, which seems to express with perfect precision 
their true character. ' 

As equivalents, they are delivered exactly like the sentences for 
which they are substituted. 

13* 



150 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

Examples. 
I. 01 Ah! 

1. Ah, when used to express surprise, suspicion, curiosity or tri- 
umph, is equivalent to a definite interrogative exclamation : e. g. 

What ! so rank ? Ah ! ah ! There is mischief in this man. 
'twas most wonderful ! — Ah ! was it so ? 

2. When used to express pity, it is equivalent to a declarative, 
or an indefinite interrogative exclamation : e. g. 

What a pity ! — Ah ! poor thing ! ah ! 

3. When used to express sorrow, a wish, admiration, <fec, it is a 
mere emission of sound, forming a species of key-note to the phrase, 
clause or sentence which follows : e. g. 

Ah, that same pale hard-hearted wench, that Rosaline, torments 
him so, that he will surely run mad. 

Ah, sinful nation. — Ah ! beautiful ! — Ah ! if you only had been 
there. — Ah ! sir, ah ! sir. Well, death's the end of all. — Ah me ! 
This object kills me. 

Rom. That I might touch that cheek ! 

Jul. Ah me ! 

Rom. She speaks ! 

II. Oi Ha! or Hah! 

1. When this expresses surprise or exultation, it is equivalent to 
a definite interrogative exclamation : e. g. 

Ha ! sure it is not so f — Ha ! sayest thou so ? — Hah ! what is't 
thou sayest \ — Hah ! have I caught thee at last ? — 
Des. Well, well, 

Do your discretion. 

lago. Ha ! I like not that. 

Iago. You cannot, if my heart were in your hand ; 
Nor shall not, while 'tis in my custody. 
Oth. Ha ! 
Iago. beware, my lord, of jealousy. 

2. When it expresses fear or disgust, it is equivalent to a declar- 
ative exclamation : e. g. 

Hah ! it is a sight to freeze one ! 
Ha ! it sickens me. 

3. When employed as an imitation of laughter, it is equivalent 
to a declarative exclamation : e. g. 

Fool. Then, pi 'ythee, be merry ; thy wit shall not go slip-shod. 
Lear. Ha! ha! ha! 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND' CLOSES APPLIED. 151 

Cap. Wife, go you to her ere you go to bed, 
Acquaint her here of my Paris' love, 

And bid her, you mark me, on Wednesday next 

But, soft : what day is this ? 

Par. Monday, my lord. 

Cap. Monday ? ha ! ha ! Well, Wednesday is too soon : 
On Thursday let it be. 

III. 01 Aha! or, Ah! ha! 

This is always an expression of innocent or insulting exultation ; 
and it is equivalent to two definite interrogative exclamations de- 
livered in quick succession : e. g. 

Ah ! ha ! you thought me blind : did you ? 

Ah ! ha ! Mrs. Ford and Mrs. Page, have I encompassed you ? 
Go to : via / 

Yea, they opened their mouth against me and said, aha ! aha ! 
our eye hath seen it. 

Let them be desolate for a reward of their shame which say 
unto me, Aha ! aha ! 

Ham. Didst perceive ? 

Hor. Very well, my lord. 

Ham. Upon the talk of the poisoning 

Hor. I did very well note him. 

Ham. Ah, ha ! — Come, some music : come, the recorders. — 

IV. 01 Eh! 

When an expression of surprise or curiosity, it is equivalent to a 
definite interrogative exclamation : when of pain, to a declarative 
exclamation : e. g. 

Eh ! are you sure of it ? 

Eh ! you hurt me. 

James. Sir, how the folks will talk of it ! Indeed, people say 
enough of you already. 

Love. Eh ! what do the people say, pray V 

V. Of 0! or Oh! 

1. When these exclamations are prefixed to exclamatory sen- 
tences expressing admiration, wonder, astonishment, love, fear, 
grief, &c, &c, they form, like No. I, 3, above, merely the key- 
note, more or less prolonged, of those sentences : e. a. 

noble judge ! O excellent young man ! 

O, let me not be mad, not mad, sweet heaven ! 

Keep me in temper : I would not be mad ! 



152 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

Nurse. lamentable day ! 
Lady Cap. What's the matter V 
Nurse. Look ! look ! heavy day ! 
Lady Cap. me ! me ! my child, my only life ! 
Revive, look up, or I will die with thee ! 
Oh, that the salvation of Israel were come out of Zion ! When 
God bringeth back the captivity of his people, Jacob shall rejoice 
and Israel shall be glad. 

Oh that I knew where I might find him ! that I might come even 
to his seat ! 

2. When used to convey a sneer, contempt, incredulity, &c, they 
are equivalent to indirect interrogative exclamations : e. g. 

Oh, but he paused upon the brink ! He should have perished 
upon the brink before attempting to cross it ! 

3. When emploj^d independently to express mental or physical 
suffering, they are equivalent to declarative exclamations : e. g. 

Why, then let fall 
Your horrible pleasure : here I stand, your slave : 
A poor, infirm, weak, and despised old man. — 
But yet I call you servile ministers, 
That have with two pernicious daughters joined 
Your high-engendered battles, 'gainst a head 
So old and white as this. ! ! 'tis foul ! 

Had it pleased Heaven 
To try me with affliction ; had he rained 
All kind of sores, and shames, on my bare head ; 
Steeped me in poverty to the very lips ; 
Given to captivity me and my utmost hopes ; 
I should have found in some part of my soul 
A drop of patience : but (alas !) to make me 
A fixed figure, for the hand of scorn 
To point his slow, unmoving finger at, — 
0! 0! 
Iago. What ! are you mad ? I charge you, get you home. 
Emit. Good gentlemen, let me have leave to speak : 
'Tis proper I obey him, but not now. — 
Perchance, Iago, I will ne'er go home. 

Oth. ! ! ! [Hanging over his wife.] 

Emil. Nay, lay thee down and roar ; 

For thou hast killed the sweetest innocent, 
That e'er did lift up eye. 
O Desdemona ! Desdemona ! dead \ 
Dead! 0! 0! 0! 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 153 

Oh! oh! — Sir, you'll certainly break my bones. 

Quick. With trial-fire touch me his finger-end : 
If he be chaste, the flame will back descend 
And turn him to no pain ; but if he start, 
It is the flesh of a corrupted heart. 
Pist. Atrial : come. 
Eva. Come : will this wood take fire ? 

\They hum him with their tapers.] 
Fahtaff. Oh! Oh! Oh! 

VI. Of Alas ! and Alack ! 

These two words, which are really the same though differently 
written, are unlike all the preceding, in being equivalent to a part 
of a sentence only, terminating with the bend. Its delivery is ac- 
curately represented by the first two words in each of the follow- 
ing sentences : " A lass, just sixteen years old to-day, was married 
this morning, at the house of her father." " A lack, I mean of 
rupees, is equal to fifty-five thousand dollars." E. g. 

Alas, the day ! I know not. — Alas ! sir, how fell you beside 
your five wits. 

Alas ! alas ! 
It is not honesty in me to speak 
What I have seen and known. 
Alas, what boots it with incessant care, 
To tend the homely, slighted shepherd's trade, 
And strictly meditate the thankless muse ? 
Alack ! how may I do it : having the hour limited ? 
Alack ! alack ! Edmund, I like not this unnatural dealing. 
Scar. I never saw an action of such shame : 
Experience, manhood, honor, ne'er before 
Did violate so itself. 

Eno. Alack! alack! 

Miscellaneous Examples of Exclamations. 

■ 

Some of these examples are not, correctly speaking, the simple sentences they purport to 
be, but rather parts of compound sentences. I wish it particularly understood, therefore, that 
every exclamation point separates what precedes from what follows it, into perfect indepen- 
dence of each other. Each is to be considered by itself, as if the other had no existence. 
The Rhetorical pause or dash, is here and there employed, as an additional means of separa- 
tion. 

What a spectacle ! — Behold a parent subject to the degrading 
influence of an ungovernable temper ! — Her very soul sickened at 
the sight ! — impossible ! replied Mary. — shocking ! — How very 
tiresome ! — And this was once a court ! thought she. — Humph ! 



154 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

that's the reason people are always glad to see them. — Fatigue ! 
Phoo ! I am sure I mind fatigue as little as any man. — My sweet- 
est Blanch, do be quiet ! 

I look after the pigs, Mr. Guffaw ! I am really astonished at 
you ! Do I look like a person made to look after pigs ? For 
heaven's sake, Mr. Guffaw, make less noise ! 

But you thought me the greatest delicacy of all ! my dear. — 
You left all your other delicacies for me ! Ha ! ha ! ha ! — What 

do you say to that ? Ha ! ha ! ha ! Surely, my mother cannot 

be displeased at my attending church ! said she in astonishment. 
— Oh ! what a situation I am placed in ! — How fortunate ! — How 
excessively childish ! — 

There's a slap on the cheek for me ! Mercy ! how it burns ! — 
God's will be done ! — What ! afraid of the effects of evil example ! 
— shocking ! to mention pigeon-pies in the same breath with roses ! 
— Oh ! my friends ! how little with all my boasting have I known 
my own heart ! — Alas ! all earthly good still blends itself with 
home ! — I shall go down to posterity with the code in my hand ! 
— Strive now to rival him in the sacred arts of peace ! 

Oh ! with what a sorrowful air of forced gayety was all this 
uttered ! — How shall I endure it ! — Oh ! Epictetus, how ! — Pho ! 
pho ! nonsense, man ! I never saw you before ! — Never saw me ! 
Never saw me ! Is it come to this ! — Who then can be saved ! — 
You are not angry, sure ! — Grant me this favor for once ! — Let me 
not perish in this horrid manner ! — Tush ! tush ! man, I made no 
reference to you ! — Out upon you ! 

Nurse. [ Within] Madam ! 

Jul. I come anon. — But if thou mean'st not well, 

I do beseech thee 

Nurse. [ Within] Madam ! 

Jul. By-and-by I come : — 

To cease thy suit and leave me to my grief : 

To-morrow will I send. 

And yet — yet what ? No news ! Mankind is mad ! 

Unheard their clock repeats the hours ! — 
Cold is the hearth within their bowers !— - 
Die for thy country ! — Thou romantic fool ! 
Thy country ! What to thee ? — 
But hark ! What nearer war-drum shakes the glade ? 
Joy ! joy ! Columbia's friends are trampling through the shade ! 

It is 
That man of sorrow ! how changed ! What pomp ! 
In grandeur terrible, all heaven descends ! 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 155 

Hark ! from the battlements of yonder tower, 
The solemn bell has tolled the midnight hour !— 
Soon may this fluttering spark of vital flame, 
Forsake its languid frame J 



Miscellaneous Examples of Declarative, Interrogative and Exclam- 
atory Sentences. 

How now, brother ? Where is my cousin ? Hath he provided 
this music? 

To be whipped ! What's his fault ? Wilt thou make a trust, 
a transgression ? The transgression is in the stealer. 
D. How now ? Why are you sad V 

C. Sad ! I am not sad. 

D. How then? Sick? 
C. I am neither, sir. 

What fire is in mine ears ? Can this be true ? 
Contempt, farewell ! Maiden pride, adieu ! 

Hero. Fie upon thee ! Art thou not ashamed ? 

Marg. Of what, lady ? Of speaking honorably ? Is not mar- 
riage honorable in a beggar ? Is not your lord honorable without 
marriage ? 

Friar. You come hither, my lord, to marry this lady f 
Claud. No. 

Leon. To be married to her, friar. You come to marry her. 
Friar. Lady, you come hither to be married to this count f 
Hero. I do. 

Claud. Bid her answer truly. 

Leon. I charge thee, daughter, to do so. 

Hero. God ! defend me ! How I am beset ! What kind of 
catechising do you call this ? 

Claud. To make you answer truly to your name. 

Hero. Is it not Hero ? Who can blot that name with any just 
reproach ? 

Bene. How doth the lady ? 

Beat. She seems dead. Help, uncle! 

Hero ! Why, Hero ! — Uncle ! Seignior Benedick ! friar ! 
Leon. O Fate ! take not away thy heavy hand ! 

Death is the fairest cover for her shame. 
Beat. How now, cousin Hero ? 

Friar. Have comfort, lady. 
Leon. Dost thou look up ? 



156 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

Friar. Wherefore should she not ? 

Leon. Wherefore ? Why,* doth not every earthly thing 
Cry shame upon her ? Could she here deny 
The story ? 

Besides all this, his children had the general advantage of a 
father's example. Piety in him was recompensed by peace of 
mind. Benevolence in him was rewarded by self-satisfaction. In- 
tegrity in him was crowned by the blessings of a good conscience. 
How natural the result ! Each became a reflection of his worth. 
Is not this an encouraging illustration of the power of a good life 
in purifying the domestic atmosphere ? What could be more V 
The question needs no answer. Parents ! consider it well. Your 
own happiness is involved in this matter. 

This, Oh men of Athens ! my duty prompted me to represent to 
you on this occasion. May God inspire you to determine upon 
measures most expedient for the common good of our country ! 

Proceed then, Athenians, to support your deliberations with 
vigor. Has not Philip, contrary to all treaties, insulted you in 
Thrace ? Is he not an implacable enemy ? Indeed, what is he not ? 

What have you left unviolated ? By what name shall I now 
address you ? Shall I call you soldiers ? Soldiers ! Can I call 
you citizens ? Citizens ! 

If I exist? — Hah! whence that doubt? "We meet again this 
night !" — so said the spectre ! Dreadful words, be ye blotted from 
my mind forever ! Hassan, to your vigilance, I leave the care of 
my beloved. Fly to me that instant, on the approach of any un- 
bidden footstep to your door. I'll to my couch. Follow me, Saib. 

How long did he pause on the brink of the Rubicon ? How came 
he to the brink of that river ? How dared he cross it $ Shall a 
man pay no respect to the boundaries of his country's rights ? 
How dared he cross that river ? Oh ! but he paused upon the 
brink ! He should have perished upon the brink before attempting 
to cross it ! Why did he pause S Why does a man's heart palpi- 
tate, on the point of committing an unlawful deed $ Why does the 
very murderer strike wide of the mortal part $ [Because of con- 
science !] That made Caesar pause upon the brink of the Rubi- 
con ! — What was the Rubicon ? The boundary of Caesar's province. 
From what did it separate his province f From his country. Was 
that country a desert ? No. 

Suffer not yourselves to be betrayed with a kiss. Let us not 
deceive ourselves, sir. What means this martial array ? Is it not 
designed to force us to submission ? Can gentlemen assign any 
other possible motive for it ? Has Great Britain an enemy in this 

* In this example, the necessity of treating why as an interrogative, is very apparent. (See 
Classification, Sec. 7, 2. 2.) 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 157 

quarter of the world, to call for all this accumulation of force? 
No ! Sir. She has none. They are meant for us. And what have 
we to oppose to them ? Shall we try argument ? Sir, we have 
been trying that for the last ten years. Have we any thing new 
to oner upon the subject ? Nothing. Shall we resort to humble 
supplication ? Let us not, sir, deceive ourselves longer. 

Blush, Grandeur ! Blush, proud Courts! Withdraw your blaze, 

Ye little stars ! Hide your diminished rays. 

Fear held them mute. [Alone, untaught to fear, 
Stood dauntless Carl.] " Behold that rival here !" 
" A rat ! [a rat !] Clap to the door." — 
The cat comes bouncing on the floor. 
What ! They admire him for his jokes ? 
See but the fortune of some folks ! 

Let Sporus tremble. What ? that thing of silk ? 

Sporus ! [that mere white curd of asses milk ?] 

Satire, alas ! alas ! can Sporus feel ! 

Who breaks a butterfly upon a wheel ? 

Booth enters. Hark ! the universal peal ! 

But has he spoken ? Not a syllable. 

Alas ! delusive dream ! 

Too well I know him. 
Give me another horse. — Bind up my wounds. — 
Have mercy, Jesu ! — Soft ! I did but dream.* — 

coward conscience ! how dost thou afflict me ! 
The lights burn blue. — It is now dead midnight. 
Cold, fearful drops stand on my trembling flesh. 
What do I fear $ Myself ? There's none else by.* — 
Is there a murderer here ? No. — Yes. — I am. 

Then fly. — What ! from myself ? Great reason.* Why ? 
Lest I revenge. What ? Myself on myself ? 

1 love myself. Wherefore $ 

* All these sentences have the appearance of being simple declarative sentences, and as such, 
seem to be at variance with the rule laid down for their delivery : inasmuch as they end with 
the inferior sweep. But are they declarative sentences ? The first is an indirect interrogative, 
(with the answer implied,) put by the speaker to himself, to assure himself of the real state of 
things : the second, is the first part or negative of a double compact, with the affirmative op- 
posed to it understood, but implied by the next line ; which, because it contained a compound 
sentence, I have not inserted in the text. Adding the affirmative and subjoining the line 
omitted, the whole passage will read thus : 

There is none else by, but Richard is alone. 
And Richard loves Richard ; that is, I am I. 

The third sentence is the first part of a single compact, with the corresponding words and the 
second part suppressed. Written in full, it would read thus : Then fly. What ! from myself? 
Yet I have great reason, though I should or do not. Why ? Lest I revenge. 

The fourth is likewise a single compact, thus : " To the penitent, indeed, but I am not peni- 
tent." 

14 



158 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

Mess. My lord ! My lord ! \KnocMng.~\ 
Hast. [ Within] Who knocks ? 
Mess. One from lord Stanley. 

Hast. [Within] What is't o'clock ? 
Mess. Upon the stroke of four. 
War is the law of violence. Peace is the law of love. That law 
of violence prevailed without mitigation from the murder of Abel 
to the advent of the Prince of Peace. 

Brothers ! let us talk together of Logan. Ye aged men ! bear ye 
testimony to the deeds of his strength. Who was like him V Who 
could resist him ? Who may withstand the winds uprooting the 
great trees of the mountain ? Let him be the foe of Logan. Thrice 
in one day hath he given battle. Thrice in one day hath he come 
back victorious. Who may bear up against the strong man ? Let 
the young hear me. Let them follow him. Warriors ! Logan was 
the father of Harold ! 

What ! old acquaintance ! could not all this flesh 
Keep in a little life ? Poor Jack, farewell ! 
Bal. You are, doubtless, happy in your prosperity f 
Far. Happy in my prosperity ! How can I be ? Can pros- 
perity give me back my buried child ? 

Bal. For such a sorrow there is a divine consolation. Have 
you sought it ? 

Far. A consolation beyond my reach. I dare not seek it. 
Bal. Why not ? God is abundantly merciful f 
Far. To the penitent.* I, alas ! am not penitent. I cannot 
repent without restoring my ill-gotten wealth to its owners. Hence 
all my sorrows. 

Bal. Sir, you deserve them. May they not prove eternal ! 



SEC. II. COMPOUND SENTENCES. 

I. DECLARATIVE SENTENCES. 

1. CLOSE SENTENCES. 

Rule VI. The close declarative is delivered with accentual 
sweeps, the bend at intermediate pauses, and perfect close. [See 
Mule I, and note : also Plate, Fig. 9.) 

Examples. 
The whole multitude of them arose and led him to Pilate. They 

* See note on the preceding page. 



THE BEND. SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 159 

who are moderate in their expectations'', meet with few disappoint- 
ments. The rocks and hills of New England will remain till the 
last conflagration. Rome carefully recorded these requests and 
intercessions', and smiled to see the nations throw themselves into 
her arms. Rome was the greatest, the richest, the most powerful 
city in the world. And the chief priests and scribes stood and 
vehemently accused him. 

The citizens of America celebrate that day which gave birth to 
their liberties. The recollection of this event swells every heart 
with joy 7 , and fills every tongue with praise. It was then that 
they struck that terrible blow under which the greatness of Persia 
sunk and expired. Old nations, with different systems of govern- 
ment', may be slow to acknowledge all that justly belongs to us. 
There are two principles, gentlemen 7 , strictly and purely American', 
which are now likely to overrun the world. Popular governments 
and general education, acting and reacting 7 , mutually producing 
and reproducing each other', are the mighty agencies, which, in 
our days, appear to be exciting, stimulating and changing the aspect 
of the civilized world. 

It is a considerable benefit of piety', that it affords the best 
friendships and sweetest society. To have a friend, wise and good, 
to whom, upon all occasions, we may resort for advice, for assist- 
ance, for consolation', is a great convenience in life. A late English 
writer has permitted himself to say', that the original establishment 
of the United States, and that of the colony of Botany Bay', were 
pretty nearly modelled on the same plan. The meaning of this 
slanderous insinuation is, that the United States were settled 
by deported convicts, in like manner as New South Wales has 
been, by felons whose punishment has been commuted into trans- 
portation. It is a principle amply borne out by the history of the 
great and powerful nations of the earth, and by that of none more 
than the country of which we speak, that the best fruits and choicest 
action of the commendable qualities of the national character, are 
to be found on the side of the oppressed few. 

That great man, Luther', gave an impulse to society, which it 
has ever since preserved. He unfolded to the wondering gaze of 
men', a form of moral beauty, which had been too long shrouded 
from their eyes by the timid dogmatism of the Papal Church. It 
is to protestant Christianity, gentlemen', that you are indebted for 
the noblest exercise of your rational powers. It is to protestant 
Christianity that you owe the vigor of your intellectual exertions and 
the purity of your moral sentiments. I could easily show you how 
much the manliness of English literature, and the fearless intrepidity 
of German speculation, and how much even of the accurate sciences 
of France, may be ascribed to the spirit of protestant Christianity. 



160 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

It is from the influence of this spirit, that the sublime astronomy 
of La Place, has not been, like that of Galileo, condemned as 
heretical. 

The ambition and avarice of man' are the sources of his unhap- 
piness. Natural dispositions, or acquired habits', regulate the tenor 
of our lives. I feel your kindness', and wish for an opportunity to 
requite it. To the beauty of her form and excellence of her natural 
disposition, a parent, equally indulgent and attentive, had done the 
fullest justice. A man may enjoy the present and forget the future, 
at the very moment in which he is writing of the insignificance of 
the former and the importance of the latter. The dying English- 
man, pouring his medicine, which has paid seven per cent., into a 
spoon which has paid fifteen per cent v flings himself back upon his 
chintz bed which has paid twenty -two per cent., makes his will on 
an eight-pound stamp, and expires in the arms of an apothecary 
who has paid a license of a hundred pounds for the privilege of 
putting him to death. 

War, peace, darts, spears, towns, rivers, every thing, in short, in 
his writings'', is alive. Fire of imagination'', strength of mind', and 
firmness of soul', are gifts of nature. Wit, grace and beauty, are 
captivating. The warbling of birds', the murmuring of streams', 
the enamel of meadows', the coolness of woods', the fragrance of 
flowers', and the sweet smell of plants', contribute greatly to the 
pleasures of the mind' and the health of the body. The diversity 
of objects, the extent of the horizon, the immense height, the coun- 
try like a map at your feet, the ocean around, the heavens above, 
conspire to overwhelm the mind. That faith which is one, that 
faith which renews and justifies all who profess it, that faith which 
confessions and formularies can never adequately express, is the 
property of all alike. A mind bold, independent and decisive, a 
will despotic in its dictates, an energy that distanced expedition, 
and a conscience pliable to every touch of self-interest, marked the 
outline of this extraordinary character. 

He who follows the pleasures of the world, which are in their 
very nature disappointing', is in constant search of care, solicitude, 
remorse and confusion. Notwithstanding all the pains which Cicero 
took in the education of his son', history informs us, that nature 
rendered him incapable of improving by all the rules of eloquence', 
the precepts of philosophy', his own endeavors', and the most re- 
fined conversation of Athens. His library consisted of several 
volumes of sermons', a concordance', Thomas a Kempis', Antoni- 
nus' Meditations', the works of the author of the Whole Duty of 
Man 7 , a translation of Boethius', the original editions of the Spec- 
tator and Guardian', Cowley's Poems', Dryden's Works', Baker's 
Chronicle', Burnet's History of his own times', Lamb's Royal Cook- 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 161 

ery', Abercromby's Scots Warriors', and Nisbet's Heraldry. With 
the newly-found continent of New Holland, she embraces under 
her protection, or in her possession, the Philippine Islands, Java, 
Sumatra'; passes the coast of Malacca'; rests for a short time 
fruitlessly to endeavor to number the countless millions of her sub- 
jects in Hindostan'; winds into the sea of Arabia 7 ; skirts along the 
coasts of Coromandel and Ceylon'; stops for a moment for refresh- 
ment at the Cape of Good Hope'; visits her plantations of the Isles 
of France and Bourbon'; sweeps along the whole of the Antilles'; 
doubles Cape Horn to protect her whalemen in the northern and 
southern Pacific Oceans'; crosses the American continent, from 
Queen Charlotte's Sound to Hudson's Bay', glancing in the pass- 
age at her colonies of the Canadas, Nova Scotia and New-Bruns- 
wick'; thence continues to Newfoundland, to look after and foster 
her fisheries'; and then takes her departure for the united kingdoms 
of England, Scotland and Ireland. 

Whatever may be the obstacles which ignorance, prejudice and 
envy oppose to the doctrines of religion', we ought never to be de- 
terred from propagating them. Whatever talents you may possess', 
whatever advantages you may have received from nature and edu- 
cation', with whatever perfections you may be endowed', expect 
only the suffrage of a small number of men. By ascending to an 
association with our ancestors', by contemplating their example and 
studying their character', by partaking their sentiments and im- 
bibing their spirit', by accompanying them in their toils', by sym- 
pathizing in their sufferings and rejoicing in their successes and 
their triumphs', we mingle our existence with theirs, and seem to 
belong to their age. How men have labored to disprove them ; 
what intellectual power and ardor and acumen, urged on by invet- 
erate hate, have assailed their credibility ; what stores of learning 
have been exhausted, what wit and what ridicule expended, to 
evince their absurdity ; w T hat ferocity of godless ambition, of bigot- 
ed power, and even of popular legislation, have been employed to 
enervate, if not destroy their influence ; is well known. Those who 
fell victims to their principles in the civil convulsions of the short- 
lived republics of Greece, or who sunk beneath the power of her 
invading foes ; those victims of Austrian tyranny in Switzerland, 
and of Spanish tyranny in Holland ; the solitary champions, or the 
united bands of high-minded and patriotic men who have in any 
region or age, struggled and suffered in this great cause ; belong 
to that people of the free, whose fortunes and progress are the 
most noble theme which man can contemplate. 

Besides the ignorance of masters who teach the first rudiments 
of reading, and the want of skill, or negligence in that article, of 
those who teach the learned languages; besides the erroneous, 

14* 



162 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

manner, which the untutored pupil falls into, through the want of 
early attention in masters, to correct small faults in the beginning, 
which increase and gain strength with years ; besides bad habits 
contracted from imitation of particular persons, or the contagion of 
example ; from a general prevalence of a certain tone or cant in 
reading or reciting, peculiar to each school, and regularly trans- 
mitted from one generation to another : besides all these, which 
are fruitful sources of vicious elocution ; there is one fundamental 
error in the method universally used in teaching to read, which at 
first gives a wrong bias, and leads us ever after blindfold from the 
right path, under the guidance of a faLe rule. 

From the worm that grovels in the dust beneath our feet, to the 
track of the leviathan in the foaming deep ; from the moth that 
corrupts the secret treasure, to the eagle that soars above his eyry in 
the clouds ; from the wild ass in the desert, to the lamb within the 
shepherd's fold ; from the consuming beast, to the cattle upon a 
thousand hills ; from the rose of Sharon, to the cedar of Lebanon ; 
from the crystal stream, gushing forth out of the flinty rock, to the 
wide waters of the deluge ; from the lonely path of the wanderer, 
to the gathering of a mighty multitude ; from the tear that falls in 
secret, to the din of battle, and the shout of a triumphant host ; 
from the solitary in the wilderness, to the satrap on the throne ; 
from the mourner clad in sackcloth, to the prince in purple robes ; 
from the gnawings of the worm that dieth not, to the seraphic 
visions of the blest ; from the still small voice, to the thunders of 
Omnipotence ; from the depths of hell, to the regions of eternal 
glory ; there is no degree of beauty or deformity, no tendency to 
good or evil, no- shade of darkness nor gleam of light, which does 
not come within the cognizance of the holy Scriptures. 

Our immense extent of fertile territory opening an inexhaustible 
field for successful enterprise, thus assuring to industry a certain 
reward for its labors, and preserving the land, for centuries to 
come, from the manifold evils of an over-crowded, and consequently 
degraded population ; our magnificent system of federated repub- 
lics, carrying out and applying the principles of representative 
democracy to an extent never hoped or imagined in the boldest 
theories of the old speculative republican philosophers, the Har- 
ringtons, Sydneys, and Lockes of former times ; the reaction, of our 
political system upon our.social and domestic concerns, bringing the 
influence of popular feeling and public opinion to bear upon all the 
affairs of life in a degree hitherto wholly unprecedented ; the un- 
constrained range of freedom of opinion, of speech, and of the 
press, and the habitual and daring exercise of that liberty upon the 
highest subjects ; the absence of all serious inequality of fortune 
and rank in the condition of our citizens : our divisions into innu- 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 163 

merable religious sects, and the consequent co-existence, never 
before regarded as possible, of intense religious zeal, with a great 
degree of toleration in feeling and perfect equality of rights ; our 
intimate connection with that elder world beyond the Atlantic, 
communicating to us, through the press and emigration, much of 
good and much of evil not our own, high science, refined art, and 
the best knowledge of old experience, as well as prejudices and 
luxuries, vices and crimes, such as could not have been expected 
to spring up in our soil for ages ; — all these, combined with numer- 
ous other peculiarities in the institutions and in the moral, civil and 
social condition of the American people, have given to our society, 
through all its relations, a character exclusively its own. 

The sick untended then', 
Languished in the dark shade, and died afar from men. 

In man or woman', but far most in man', 
And most of all in man that ministers 
And serves the altar', in my soul I loathe 
All affectation. 

All night the dreadless angel, unpursued, 
Through heaven's wide champaign held his way, till morn, 
Waked by the circling hours, with rosy hand 
Unbarred the gates of light. 

He that attends to his interior self, 

That has a heart and keeps it, has a mind 

That hungers, and supplies it, and who seeks 

A social, not a dissipated life, 

Has business. 

Through the night 
Of years, the steps of virtue she shall trace, 
And show the earlier ages, where her sight 
Can pierce the eternal shadows o'er her face. 
Late, from this western shore, that morning chased 
The deep and ancient night, that threw its shroud 
O'er the green land of groves, the beautiful waste, 
Nurse of full streams, and lifter up of proud 
Sky-mingling mountains that o'erlook the cloud. 
Upon the hill 
The tall old maples, verdant still, 
Yet tell, in grandeur of decay 
How swift the years have passed 'away, 
Since first, a child and half afraid, 
I wandered in the forest shade. 
This little rill that, from the springs 



164 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

Of yonder grove, its current brings, 
Plays on the slope awhile, and then 
Goes prattling into groves again, 
Oft to its warbling waters drew 
My little feet. 

To the referent throng', 
Grave and time wrinkled men, with locks all white, 
Gave laws, and judged their strifes, and taught the way of right 
Till bolder spirits seized the rule and nailed 
On men the yoke, that man should never bear', 
And drove them forth to battle. 

Then all this youthful paradise around', 
And all the broad and boundless mainland', lay 
Cooled by the interminable wood that frowned 
O'er mount and vale, where never summer ray 
Glanced, till the strong tornado broke his way 
Through the gay giants of the sylvan wild. 

His simple heart 
Might not resist the sacred, influences', 
Which, from the stilly twilight of the place', 
And from the gray old trunks that high in heaveii 
Mingled their mossy boughs, and from the sound 
Of the invisible breath that swayed at once 
All their green tops, stole over him, and bowed 
His spirit with the thought of boundless power 
And inaccessible majesty. 

His native hills that rise in happier climes', 
The grot that heard his song of other times', 
His cottage-home', his bark of slender sail', 
His glassy lake', and broomwood-blossomed vail', 
Rush on his thoughts. 

Each ray, that shone, in early time, to light 

The faltering footstep in the path of right'; 

Each gleam of clearer brightness shed to aid 

In man's maturer day his bolder sight'; 

(All blended, like the rainbow's radiant braid';) 

Pour yet, and still shall pour, the blaze that cannot fade. 

Whatever fruits in different climes are found 
That proudly rise, or humbly court the ground ; 
Whatever blooms in torrid tracts appear, 
Whose bright succession decks the varied year; 
Whatever sweets salute the northern sky 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 165 

With vernal lines that blossom but to die ; — 

These, here disporting, own a kindred soil, 

Nor ask luxuriance from the planter's toil. 

The hills 

Rock-ribbed, and ancient as the sun, the vales 

Stretching in pensive quietness between, 

The venerable woods, rivers that move 

In majesty, and the complaining brooks 

That make the meadows green, and, poured round all, 

Old Ocean's gray and melancholy waste, 

Are but the solemn decorations all 

Of the great tomb of man. 

This royal throne of kings ; this sceptred isle ; 

This earth of majesty ; this seat of Mars ; 

This other Eden, demi-paradise ; 

This fortress, built by nature for herself, 

Against infection, and the hand of war ; 

This precious stone, set in the silver sea, 

Which serves it in the office of a wall, 

Or as a moat defensive to a house, 

Against the envy of less happy lands ; 

This blessed plot ; this earth ; this realm ; this England ; 

This nurse ; this teeming womb of Royal Kings, 

Feared by their breed, and famous by their birth ; 

Renowned for their deeds, as far from home 

As is the sepulchre, in stubborn Jewry, 

Of the world's ransom, blessed Mary's son : 

This land of such dear souls ; this dear, dear land ; 

Dear for her reputation, through the world ; 

Is now leased out, (I die pronouncing it,) 

Like to a tenement or paltry farm. 
Exception. I have the same remark to make here that I made 
under Rule first ; namely, that indirect interrogatives, and parts of 
compacts, both single and double, in consequence of incorrect 
punctuation, are often mistaken for compound close declara- 
tives : e. g. 

You could not foresee the reception you met with. — No. 
Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth to me. 
It is surely excessively extraordinary that she should have 
alarmed me so much about your health, and sent me such precise 
instructions to take care of it. 

The mind may improve', may enlarge its stores of information 
and strengthen its powers, after a certain age'. The body having 
reached its maturity, falls inevitably into decay. 



166 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

I admit that the evidence of this man's guilt must insure his 
condemnation'. Yet we are to consider, and consider well, what 
we shall do with him after condemnation. 

I am not the advocate of indolence and improvidence'. But I 
pity the poor who have become poor in consequence of disasters 
they could not avert. 

We should not bestow our faculties on a multitude of small and 
unimportant affairs'. This is to waste them without benefit to our- 
selves or mankind v . We should employ them in the pursuit of 
some one great and good end. 

The first three of these examples are indirect interrogatives : one of each kind. The suc- 
ceeding three are single compacts; the parts of which should be separated by the comma, 
except in the first of these; which, having both correlative words understood, may receive 
the semicolon. (See Punct. of Single Compact.) The last example is a double compact, with 
the first, second and third proposition expressed. 

2. COMPACT SENTENCES. 

1. Single Compact. 

Rule YII. The first part of a single compact sentence, and all 
the members of the first part, should it comprise more than one, 
terminate with the bend : the second part, if it comprise but one 
member, must terminate with perfect close ; but if it comprise two 
or more members, the series must be delivered like an imperfect 
loose sentence. (See Imperfect Loose below, and Plate, Fig. 10.) 

The first part, and the members of the first part, should there be any, may be either simple 
or compound ; and if compound, either close or compact : the second part, and also the mem- 
bers of the second part, in addition to this variety of construction, may be also either perfect 
or imperfect loose : and hence the generality of the rule. It refers only to the termination of 
pails, or members of parts. The delivery' of the intermediate portion of these, depends on 
their construction : if simple declaratives, they should be delivered like simple declaratives, in 
conformity with Rule I : if close, like close : if compact, like compact : if loose, like loose. 

I have said in the rule above, that "the first part of a single compact, and all the members 
of the first part, should it comprise more than one, terminate with the bend." The following 
cases may be regarded as exceptions to this. 

1. If two compact sentences with the same correlative words immediately succeed each 
other, the first part of each, being in contrast with that of the other, the second first part, in- 
stead of being terminated with the bend, according to the rule, ends with partial close : e.g. 

[His style is always beautiful.] If clear', you are pleased with 
him. If he is obscure', you are pleased with him. 

2. If the same compact sentence comprise two similar members in the first part in con- 
trast, the second of these members is delivered with partial close: e.g. 

If a good man has injured you', if a bad man has injured you\ 
it is all the same x : you must forgive. 

3. If the last member of a series in the first part, contain an intensive particle, it should 
terminate with partial close : e. g. 

If they have wealth', if they have even a competency\ then, many 
think, they could be happy. 

Though they lost the esteem of the world', though their near- 
est and dearest relatives forsook them', nay, though even the sane- 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 167 

tity of life itself was invaded\ yet they held to their faith unshaken : 
met all : endured all. 

4. The last member of a series in the first part, though it contain neither contrast nor inten- 
sive particles, may yet, for the sake of varying the delivery, be made to terminate with partial 
close. Of this I need give no example, since the experiment may be made with any of the 
examples of a series, which follow under the general rule. {The delivery here recommended, 
conforms to the representation, Plate, Fig. 14, c.) 

5. When the first part, with or without a series of members, begins with the word suppose 
in the imperative, it terminates with partial close. In this case, however, the second part al- 
most uniformly comprises an interrogative : in other words, the first and second part together 
form a semi-interrogative. {See Rule XVIII, Note.) 

Examples. 
1st form: with both the correlative words expressed. 

As it was then', so is it now. 

As ye have received Christ', so walk ye in him. 

As in Adam all die', so in Christ shall all be made alive. 

As soon as he sees what he never saw before', so soon does he 
feel what he never felt before. 

As the lightning that lighteneth out of the one part under heav- 
en, shineth unto the other part under heaven', so shall the Son of 
Man be in his day. 

• As in private character adversity is often requisite to give a 
proper direction and temper to strong qualities', so the noblest 
traits of a national character, even under the freest and most inde- 
pendent of hereditary governments, are commonly to be sought in 
the ranks of a minority, or of a dissenting sect. 

As the admirer of painting is most offended with the scrawls of a 
dauber', as the enthusiast in music is the most hurt with the dis- 
cords of an ill-played instrument', so the lover of mankind, as his 
own sense of virtue has painted them, when he comes abroad into 
life and sees what they really are, feels the disappointment in the 
severest manner. 

As the middle, and the fairest, and the most conspicuous places 
in cities, are usually chosen for the erection of statues and monu- 
ments, dedicated to the memory of worthy men who have nobly 
deserved of their country' ; so should we in the heart and centre 
of our soul, in the best and highest apartment thereof, in the pla- 
ces most exposed to ordinary observation, and most secure from 
worldly care, erect lively representations, and lasting memorials of 
divine bounty. 

As a covetous man, whatever besides he is doing, will be carking 
about his bags and treasure', an ambitious man will be devising his 
plots and projects', a voluptuous man will have his mind on his 
dishes', a lascivious man will be doting on his amours', a studious 
man will be musing on his notions', every man according to his 
particular inclination, will lard his business and besprinkle all his 



168 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

actions with cares and wishes tending to the enjoyment of what he 
most esteems and affects'; so may a good Christian, through all 
his undertakings, wind in devout reflections, and pious motions of 
soul toward the chief object of his mind and affection. 

As no cause 
For such exalted confidence could e'er 
Exist', so none is now for fixed despair. 

As men from men 
Do, in the constitution of their souls, 
Differ by mysteries not to be explained' ; 
And as we fall by various ways, and sink 
Through manifold degrees to guilt and shame' ; 
So manifold and various are the ways 
Of restoration. 

As one who long in thickets and in brakes 

Entangled, winds now this way and now that, 

His devious course uncertain, seeking home' ; 

Or having long in miry ways been foiled, 

And sore discomfited, from slough to slough 

Plunging, and half despairing of escape' ; 

If chance at length he find a greensward smooth 

And faithful to the foot, his spirits rise, 

He cheerups brisk his ear-erecting steed, 

And winds his way with pleasure and with ease' ; 

So I, designing other themes, and called 

To adorn the sofa with eulogium due, 

To tell its slumbers, and to paint its dreams, 

Have rambled wide. 

As when a traveller, a long day past 

In painful search of what he cannot find, 

At night's approach, content with the next cot, 

There ruminates, awhile, his labor lost, 

Then cheers his heart with what his fate affords, 

And chants a sonnet to deceive the time, 

Till the due season calls him to repose ; 

Thus I, long travelled in the ways of men, 

And dancing, with the rest, the giddy maze, 

Where disappointment smiles at hope's career ; 

Warned by the languor of life's evening ray, 

At length have housed me in an humble shed ; 

Where future wandering banished from my thought, 

And waiting, patient, the sweet hour of rest, 

I chase the moments with a serious song. 




THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 169 



Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily', 
therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil. 

Because he saw his head higher, his arms stronger, his sword 
and spear larger, his shield heavier than any Israelite's, therefore 
he defies the whole host. 

For that [because] they hated knowledge, and did not choose 
the fear of the Lord, they would none of my counsel, they despised 
all my reproof, therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way, 
and be filled with their own devices. 

Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life. 

Profit is therefore so much affected and pursued, because it is, or 
doth seem, apt to procure or promote some good desirable to us. 

The gain of money, or of something equivalent, is therefore spe- 
cially termed profit in the language of men / , because it readily 
supplies necessity v ; furnishes convenience^ feeds pleasure^; satisfies 
fancy and curiosity^; promotes ease and liberty^; supports honor 
and dignity^; procures power, dependencies and friendships^ ren- 
ders a man somewhat considerable in the world x ; and, in fine, en- 
ables one to do good. 

Because I eat and drink without luxury, banishing all foreign 
superfluity ; because I dress myself in a way at once comfortable, 
and pleasing to the eye ; because I reinstate the manly beard in its 
lost honor; because I withstand the privileges and prejudices of 
my class, and would pass for no more than I am worth ; because I 
believe that I have not stained myself by marriage with a maiden 
of lower and unhonorable descent ; because I will not establish my 
character by a duel, or bear about the insignia of real or feigned 
services, as a show upon my breast ; because I make my slaves my 
free companions and friends ; because I forswear deceit, and assert 
the truth without fear; therefore am I treated in the nineteenth 
century as a fool. 

Whereas a treaty of cession was concluded at Washington city, 
in the District of Columbia, by James Barbour, Secretary of War, 
of the one part, and John Stidman and others, of the other part, 
and which treaty bears date the twenty-fourth day of January, one 
thousand eight hundred and twenty-six'; and whereas the object 
of said treaty being to embrace a cession, by the Creek nation, of 
all the lands owned by them within the chartered limits of Georgia, 
and it having been the opinion of the parties, at the time when the 
said treaty was concluded, that all, or nearly all of said lands were 
embraced in said cession, and by the lines as defined in said treaty, 
and the supplemental article thereto'; and whereas it having been 
since ascertained that the said lines in said treaty, and the supple- 
ment thereto, do not embrace all the lands owned by the Creek 
nation within the chartered limits of Georgia, and the President of 

15 



'o 



170 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED, 

the United States having urged the Creek nation further to extend 
the limits as denned in the treaty aforesaid, and the chiefs and 
head men of the Creek nation being desirous of complying with 
the wish of the President of the United States'; therefore, they, the 
chiefs and head men aforesaid, agree to cede, and they do hereby 
cede, to the United States, all the remaining lands now owned or 
claimed by the Creek nation, not heretofore ceded, and found, on 
actual survey, to lie within the chartered limits of the State of 
Georgia. 

Either the mere will of the magistrate', or the conscience of the 
individual must decide in the case. 

Either he will hate the one and love the other', or else he will 
hold to the one and despise the other. 

He either thought the action so near to indifferent that he foreco 
it, or so laudable that he expected his friend to approve it 

Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents. 

Neither could he obtain the benefits which he so earnestly desired, 
and diligently sought, nor avert the calamities which he so greatly 
feared. 

If he', then I. 

If he confessed it', then forgive him. 

If there be no resurrection of the dead', then is Christ not risen. 

If Christ be not risen', then is our preaching vain ; and your faith 
is also vain. 

If, in the wanton exercise of this right, we capriciously reject the 
old and faithful servant, whose services have an equal claim on our 
admiration and gratitude', then we are tyrants. 

If through female encouragement and example, the spirit of this 
age is to be purified from folly', if it is to be elevated and adorned 
by excellence', then women must be sincerely and practically re- 
ligious. 

My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my command- 
ments with thee, so that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and 
apply thine heart unto understanding'; yea, if thou criest after 
knowledge, and liftest up thy voice after understanding'; if thou 
seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasure'; 
then shalt thou understand the fear of the Lord, and find the 
knowledge of God. 

If pleasure, unmixed with forecastings of retributive bitterness, is 
sought ; if the body is to be recruited after the exhaustion of dis- 
ease ; if the wounded spirit is to be healed after the anguish of 
privation, or the agony of misfortune ; nay,* if there be any hope 

* Not only so, but if, &c. (See Classification Simple Declarative, Yes and No, Double 
Comp., Gen. Note and Rule VIII, 3.) 



1 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 171 

that reason shall resume her power after the pressure of the mind 
has been more than its strength ; then, the joy that bringeth no 
sorrow, the medicine for the disease, the balm for the wounded 
spirit, the asylum for the wandering mind, are found nowhere but 
in the sunny glades, the green canopies, and the life-imparting 
breezes of nature. 

If indeed we desire to behold a literature like that which has 
sculptured with such energy of expression, which has painted so 
faithfully and vividly, the crimes, the vices, the follies of ancient 
and modern Europe ; if we desire that our land should furnish for 
the orator and the novelist, for the painter and the poet, age after 
age, the wild and romantic scenery of war ; the glittering march 
of armies and the revelry of the camp ; the shrieks and blasphe- 
mies, and all the horrors of the battle-field ; the desolations of the 
harvest and the burning cottage ; the storm, the sack, and the ruin 
of cities : if we desire to unchain the furious passions of jealousy 
and selfishness, of hatred, revenge, and ambition, those lions that 
now sleep harmless in their den ; if we desire that the lake, the 
river, the ocean, should blush with the blood of brothers ; that the 
winds should waft from the land to the sea, from the sea to the 
land, the roar and smoke of battle ; that the very mountain-tops 
should become altars for the sacrifice of brothers : if we desire 
that these, and such as these, (the elements to an incredible extent 
of the literature of the old world,) should be the elements of our 
literature ; then, but then only, let us hurl from its pedestal the 
majestic statue of our union, and scatter its fragments over all our 
land. 

If haply, from his guarded breast, 
Did steal the unsuspected sigh ; 
And memory, an unbidden guest, 
With former passions filled his eye' ; 
Then, pious hope and duty praised 
The wisdom of the unerring sway ; 
And while his eye to heaven he raised, 
Its silent waters sunk away. 

If the midnight bell 
Did, with his iron tongue and brazen mouth, 
Sound one unto the drowsy race of night' ; 
If this same were a churchyard where we stand, 
And thou possessed with a thousand wrongs' ; 
Or if that surly spirit, melancholy, 
Had baked thy blood and made it heavy, thick' ; 
Or if that thou couldst see me without eyes, 
Hear me without thine ears, and make reply 



172 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLTDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

Without a tongue ; using conceit alone, 
Without eyes, ears, and harmful sound of words' : 
Then, in despite of brooded, watchful day, 
I would into thy bosom pour my thoughts. 
Yes, indeed', but not now. 
The spirit, indeed, is willing', but the flesh is weak. 
Bourdaloue is, indeed, a great reasoner', but his style is verbose. 
The harvest truly is plenteous, but the laborers are few. 
Innocence, indeed, possessed my heart', but it was innocence 
unguarded and intoxicated with foolish desires and liable to temp- 
tation. 

Ye shall, indeed, drink of my cup, and be baptized with the 
baptism that I am baptized with, but to sit on my right hand and 
on my left is not mine to give. 

I would not, indeed, undertake to maintain that no one can be 
an orator who is not a virtuous man, but there certainly is a kind 
of moral excellence implied in a renunciation of all effort after dis- 
play, in a forgeifulness of self, which is absolutely necessary, both 
in the manner of writing and in the delivery, to give the full force 
to what is said. 

Theirs is, indeed, 
A teaching voice', but 'tis the praise of them, 
That whom it teaches, it makes prompt to learn, 
And, with the boon, mves talents for its use. 

The mind, indeed, enlightened from above, 
Views him in all, ascribes to the grand cause 
The grand effect, acknowledges with joy 
His manner, and with rapture tastes his style' ; 
But never yet did philosophic tube, 
That brings the planets home into the eye 
Of observation, and discovers, else 
Not visible, his family of worlds, 
Discover him that rules them. 

Rather he', than I. 

Rather be good', than seem to be. 

I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than 
dwell in the tents of wickedness. 

He chose rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than 
to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season. 

In the Church I had rather speak five words with my under- 
standing, that by my voice I might teach others also, than ten 
thousand words in an unknown tongue. 

Than prefer the temporal to the eternal with its happiness and 
glory, than give up the joy I find in religion, than forsake God 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 173 

who has hitherto crowned my life with loving-kindness and tender 
mercy, and consequently who has deserved at my hands nothing 
but veneration, gratitude and love ; I would rather die. 

Greater is he that prophesieth, than he that speaketh with 
tongues. 

It is better to trust in the Lord, than to put confidence in princes. 

Of greater uncharitableness we cannot be guilty, than to inter- 
pret the afflictions that befall our neighbors, as punishments and 
judgments. 

It had been better for them not to have known the way of 
righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy 
commandment delivered unto them. 

Though deep / , yet clear. 

Though he slay me 7 , yet will I trust in him. 

Though Samson's hair was shorter 7 , yet he knew God's hand 
was not. 

Yet he said not a word of the angels 7 , though it was the inva- 
riable custom to do so on St. Michael's day. 

Although it is not true that this man intended to take the life of 
his neighbor, yet it cannot be denied that he was the cause of his 
death. 

Though the bare word of an offender can never be taken against 
the oath of his accuser, yet it must be acknowledged that the matter 
of his defence was sufficiently pertinent to obtain his acquittal. 

Although the fig-tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in 
the vines 7 ; the labor of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall 
yield no meat 7 ; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there 
shall be no herd in the stalls 7 ; yet I will rejoice in the Lord : I 
will joy in the God of my salvation. 

Though I bewail 
This triumph 7 , yet the pity of my heart 
Prevents me not from owning that the law 
By which mankind now suffers, is most just. 

Though from the world and worldly care 
My wearied mind I mean to free 7 ; 
Yet every hour that heaven can spare, 
My Armine, I devote to thee. 

Though thy wild heart some hapless hour may miss 
The peaceful tenor of unvarying bliss 7 , 
Yet still may hope her talisman employ 
To snatch from heaven anticipated joy. 
Though dull the close of life, and far away 
Each flower that hailed the dawning of the day 7 ; 
15* 



174 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

Yet o'er her lonely hopes that once were dear, 

The time-taught spirit, pensive, not severe, 

With milder griefs her aged eye shall fill, 

And weep their falsehood, while she loves them still. 

When you hear this 7 , then fly. 

When this shall have occurred, then be assured their ruin is at 
hand. 

When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, 
spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place 7 , 
then let them who are in Judea flee into the mountains. 

When your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction 
cometh as a whirlwind 7 ; when distress and anguish cometh upon 
you 7 ; then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer : they 
shall seek me early, but they shall not find me. 

When you hear a man making any exceptions to any funda- 
mental law of duty in favor of some particular pursuit or passion, 
and considering the dictates of honor as neither more nor less than 
as motives of selfish prudence in respect to character, in other words, 
as conventional and ever-changing regulations, the breach of which* 
will, if detected, blackball the offender, and send him to Coventry in 
that particular rank and class of society of which he was born or 
has become a member 7 ; when, instead of giving instantaneous 
and unconditional obedience to the original voice from within, a 
man substitutes for this, and listens after, the mere echo of the 
voice from without 7 ; then I say, that to smile, or show yourself 
smillng-angry, as if a tap with your fan was a sufficient punish- 
ment, and a " for shame ! you don't think so, I am sure," or, 
" you should not say so," a sufficient reproof, would be an ominous 
symptom either of your own laxity of moral principle and dead- 
ness to true honor and the unspeakable contemptibleness of this 
gentlemanly counterfeit of it 7 , or of your abandonment to a blind 
passion kindled by superficial advantages and outside agreeables, 
and blown and fueled by that most base and yet frequent thought, 
" one must not be over-nice, or a woman may say no, till no one 
asks her to say yes." 

When any fresh, any rare, any remarkable benefit happens to 
us 7 ; when prosperity attends our honest endeavors 7 ; when un- 
expected favors fall, as it were, of their own accord into our 
bosoms, like the grain in the golden age, springing, without our 
care or our toil, for our use and enjoyment' ; when we are de- 
livered from straits, in our apprehension, inextricable 7 , surmount 
difficulties seeming insuperable 7 , escape hazards apparently inevita- 
ble 7 ; when we revolve in our minds the favorable passages of 
Providence, that in the whole course of our lives have befallen 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 175 

us' ; how in our extreme poverty and distress, God has raised up 
friends who have commiserated, comforted and succored us, and 
changed our sorrowful condition into a state of joy / ; has turned 
our mourning into dancing 7 ; has put off our sackcloth and girded 
us with gladness 7 ; has considered our troubles and known our 
soul in adversity 7 ; has set our feet in a large room and furnished 
us with plentiful means of subsistence' : how in the various 
changes and adventures and travels of our life, upon sea and land, at 
home and abroad, among friends and strangers and enemies, he 
has protected us from wants and dangers' ; from devouring dis- 
ease, and the dis temperature of infectious air' ; from the assaults 
of bloody thieves and barbarous pirates' ; from the rage of fire 
and the fury of tempests' ; from disastrous casualties' ; from treacher- 
ous surprises' ; from open mischiefs that with dreadful force ap- 
proached and threatened our destruction 7 : when the ordinary 
effects of divine providence do, in any advantageous manner, pre- 
sent themselves to our view' ; when we peruse the volumes of 
story, and therein ^observe the various events of human actions'; 
especially the seasonable rewards of virtue, the noticeable protec- 
tions and deliverances of innocence, and the unexpected punish- 
ments of malicious wickedness' ; when we contemplate the won- 
derful works of nature, and, walking about at our leisure, gaze 
upon this ample theatre of the world, considering the stately 
beauty, constant order, and sumptuous furniture thereof ; the 
glorious splendor, and uniform motion of the heavens' ; the pleas- 
ant fertility of the earth' ; the curious figure and fragrant sweets 
of plants' ; the exquisite frame of animals' ; and all the amazing 
miracles of nature, wherein the glorious attributes of God are most 
conspicuously displayed' ; then should we admire, exult and cele- 
brate : then should our hearts be filled with gratitude and our 
lips break forth in praise. 

When Babel was confounded, and the great 
Confederacy of projectors, wild and vain, 
Was split into diversity of tongues' ; 
Then, as a shepherd separates his flock, 
These to the upland, to the valley those, 
God drave asunder, and assigned their lot, 
To all the nations. 

While we are deeply moved at the awful spectacle of majesty 
laboring under a permanent and hopeless eclipse', then we are con- 
soled with the reflection that he walked in the light while he pos- 
sessed the light. 

While we were engaged in the fearful struggle which has been 
at length so successfully terminated', then it pleased the great Ruler 



176 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

of nations to visit our aged, beloved and revered monarch with one 
of the most dreadful calamities incident to human nature. 

Even while his mother, during her last illness, was obliged to 
accept of money from her physician, because she could not obtain 
payment of her jointure ; and while, after her decease, his two sis- 
ters were dunning him, every day, without effect, for the small 
annuity left them by their father, then, even then, he was called a 
good-hearted man by three-fourths of his acquaintance. 

Where I am', there shall also my servant be. 

Where the Spirit of the Lord is', there is liberty. 

Where the carcass is', there will the eagles be gathered together. 

For where two or three are gathered together in my name', there 
am I in the midst of them. 

Where you see a man meeting obstacles and removing them, 
struggling with difficulties and overcoming them, and still pressing 
forward under every discouragement, self-denying and self-relying ; 
there you see a man who will probably rise in the world. 

Wheresoever there is faith in God, there God abides. 

Wheresoever God is, there is awakened a zeal which urges and 
constrains men to perform good works. 

Where the olive leaves were twinkling in every wind that blew', 

There sat beneath the pleasant shade a damsel of Peru. 

There is a cave, 
Within the mount of God, fast by his throne', 
Where light and darkness in perpetual round 
Lodge and dislodge by turns. 

There is not a people on earth so abject', as to think that national 
courtesy requires them to hush up the tale of the glorious exploits 
of their fathers and countrymen. 

He was so filled with the desire of wealth', so engrossed by the 
cares of business', and, in a word, so lost to all other considerations 
than those of money', that the moral and intellectual welfare of his 
children were entirely forgotten. 

2d form : with one of the correlative words expressed. 

As the South American states have thus won an honorable 
station among independent states', it becomes our imperative duty 
to treat them as such. 

As his excessive good-nature makes him take vast delight in the 
office', his great penetration into the human mind, joined to his 
great experience, renders him a wonderful proficient in it. 

As the authors of this race were more desirous, perhaps, of being 
admired than understood', they sometimes drew their conceits from 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 177 

recesses of learning not very much frequented by common readers 
of poetry. 

As the right to use the means of happiness which God has given 
him in such manner as he will, provided he do not violate the cor- 
responding rights of others, is conferred upon the individual by the 
Creator', it is manifest that no being but the Creator can restrict it. 

As it is impossible for us to conceive either how numerous, or 
how important may be our relations to other creatures in another 
state, or how much more intimate may be the relations in which 
we shall stand to our Creator' ; and as there can be no limit conceived 
to our power of comprehending these relations, nor to our power of 
becoming conscious of the obligations they involve' ; it is manifest 
that no limit can be conceived to the progress of man's capacity for 
virtue. 

He was not worthy of death, inasmuch as he hated him not in 
time past. 

Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my 
brethren, ye have done it unto me. 

Inasmuch as I have an exclusive right to appropriate innocently, 
the possessions I have acquired by the means stated above ; and 
inasmuch as every other man has the same right ; we may, if we 
choose, voluntarily exchange our right to particular things with 
each other. 

Forasmuch as many have taken in hand to set forth in order a 
declaration of those things which are most surely believed among 
us, even as they delivered them unto us, who, from the beginning, 
were eye-witnesses and ministers of the word ; it seemed good to 
me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the 
very first, to write unto thee, in order, most excellent Theophilus, 
that thou mightest know the certainty of those things wherein thou 
hast been instructed. 

Because I live, ye shall live also. 

The hireling fleeth, because he is an hireling. 

Because I tell you the truth, ye believe me not. 

We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we 
love the brethren. 

Because some men have suddenly become rich by some happy 
accident of fortune, without labor' ; because others have been 
brought, by an extraordinary combination of circumstances, unex- 
pectedly into popular notice and esteem', and yet others have risen 
to eminence without showing the successive steps by which they 
attained it' ; many foolishly imagine that advancement goes by des- 
tiny ; and so they waste their lives in indulging, idly, expectations 
which can end only in bitter disappointment. 

Because this is a time of peace ; because there is a perfect calm, 



178 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

except so far as an agitation among the principal manufacturers 
may interrupt it.; because you are not subject to any coercion what- 
ever : I entreat you to bear in mind that the aspect of affairs may 
change : that we may have to contend with worse harvests than 
that of this year: that it may be wise to avail ourselves of the 
present moment to effect an adjustment which, I believe, must 
ultimately be made ; and which could not be long delayed without 
engendering feelings of animosity between different classes of her 
Majesty's subjects. 

Raphael, said he, thou nearest what stir on earth 
Satan, from hell 'scaped through the darksome gulf, 
Hath raised in Paradise ; and how disturbed 
This night the human pair; how he designs 
In them at once to ruin all mankind : 
Go, therefore, half this day, as friend with friend, 
Converse with Adam, in what lower shade 
Thou findest him from the heat of noon retired, 
To respite his day-labor with repast 
Or with repose. 
You may skim the surface of science / , or fathom its depths. 
You may become florid declaimers 7 , or cloud-compelling rea- 
soners. 

Genius, intellect, imagination, taste and sensibility, must be 
baptized into religion / ; or they will never know, and never make 
known their real glory and immortal power. 

You may, if you please, become literary fops and dandies, and 
acquire the affected lisp and drawling nonchalance of the London 
cockney ; or you may learn to wield the herculean club of Doctor 
Johnson. 

It will be a blessing of inestimable value to the human family 
of every clime from the frozen regions of the north to the sunny 
and luxuriant slopes of the south, from the rising sun to its setting, 
quite round the globe ; or a disappointment of all aspirations after 
something nobler and purer ; something better adapted to human 
nature, its circumstances, wants and tendencies, than the misera- 
ble apologies for governments which now exist throughout the 
world. 

If any man love the world 7 , the love of the Father is not in 
him. 

If we say we have no sin*', we deceive ourselves and the truth 
is not in us. 

If we confess our sins 7 , he is faithful and just to forgive us our 
sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 

If, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 179 

death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved 
by his life. 

If the spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in 
you, he that raised up Christ from the dead, shall also quicken 
your mortal bodies by his spirit that dwelleth in you. 

If we are true to our country, in our day and generation, and 
those who come after us shall be true to it also ; assuredly, as- 
suredly we shall elevate her to a pitch of prosperity and happiness, 
of honor and power, never yet reached by any nation beneath the 
sun. 

Had our forefathers failed on that day of trial which we now 
celebrate'; had their votes and their resolves ended in the breath 
in which they began 7 ; had the rebels laid down their arms as they 
were commanded, and the military stores which had been frugally 
treasured up for the crisis, been, without resistance, destroyed 7 ; 
then the Revolution had been at an end ; or rather it had never 
been begun. 

If we entered the world with the same reason which we carry 
with us to an opora, the first time we enter a theatre ; and if the 
curtain of the universe, if I may so term it, were to be rapidly 
drawn up ; struck with the grandeur of every thing which we saw, 
and all the obvious contrivances exhibited, we should not be capa- 
ble of refusing our homage to the Eternal Power which had pre- 
pared for us such a spectacle. 

Were there indeed but reason enough to stir or stagger the 
infidel ; were it somewhat dubious, which is far from being the 
case, whether punishments are reserved for impiety ; were there 
but any small reason for a judgment to come, as there are appa- 
rently very many and great ones ; had most men conspired in deny- 
ing Providence, as ever generally they have consented in avowing 
it ; were there a pretence of miracles for establishing the mor- 
tality and impunity of souls, as there have been numberless 
strongly testified by good witnesses and great events, to confirm 
the opposite doctrine ; did most wise and sober men judge in favor 
of irreligion, as commonly they ever did, and still do, otherwise ; 
yet wisdom would require that men should choose to be pious ; 
since otherwise no man can be thoroughly secure. 

If a multitude of parts, all manifestly relating to each other, 
and producing a result, which itself has as manifest a relation to 
the results of other proportions, cannot be observed by us with- 
out an irresistible impression of design ; if it is impossible for us 
to conceive, that nine millions of alphabetical characters could fall 
of themselves into a treatise or a poem ; that all the pictures, I will 
not say in the whole world, but even the few which are to be found 
in a single gallery, were the product of colors, thrown at random 



180 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

from a brush upon canvas ; that a city with all its distinct houses, 
and all the distinct apartments in those houses, and all the imple- 
ments of domestic use which those apartments contain, could not 
have existed without some designing mind, and without some hands 
that fashioned the stone and the wood, and performed all the other 
operations necessary for erecting and adorning the different edi- 
fices : if it be easier for us to believe, that our senses deceived us 
in exhibiting to us such a city, and that there was truly nothing 
seen by us, than to believe that the houses existed of themselves, 
without any contrivance; the only question, as I have already 
said, is, whether the universe exhibit such combination of parts 
relating to each other as the poem, the picture, the city, or any 
other object for which we find it necessary to have recourse to 
designing skill. 

If self must be denied, 

And sin forsaken quite'; 

They rather choose the way that's wide, 

And strive to think it right. 

If your ears refuse • 
The language of his grace'; 
And hearts grow hard like stubborn Jews, 
That unbelieving race / ; 
The Lord, in vengeance drest, 
Will lift his hand and swear, 
" Ye that despise my promised rest, 
Shall have no portion there." 

Had it pleased Heaven 
To try me with affliction ; had he rained 
All kinds of sores, and shames, on my bare head ; 
Steeped me in poverty to the very lips ; 
Given to captivity me and my utmost hopes : 
I should have found in some part of my soul 
A drop of patience. 

If servility, with supple knees 
Whose trade it is to smile, to crouch, to please ; 
If smooth dissimulation, skilled to grace 
A devil's purpose with an angel's face ; 
If smiling peeresses, and simpering peers 
Encompassing his throne a few short years ; 
If the gilt carriage and the pampered steed 
That wants no driving, and disdains the lead ; 
If guards, mechanically formed in ranks, 
Playing, at beat of drum, their martial pranks, 



THE BEND, SWEEPS SLIDES, AND, CLOSES APPLIED. 181 

Should'ring and standing as if struck to stone, 
While condescending majesty looks on ; 
If monarchy consist in such base things ; 
Sighing, I say again, I pity kings. 

I go 7 , but I return. 

Well 7 , but he fled. 

Yes', but with hesitation. 

What you say is true', but not at all to the point. 

You may starve me', but you can never compel me to do what 
you ask. 

You may have a large share of these and other estimable prin- 
ciples 7 , but along with these many things, you may lack one thing x ; 
and that one thing is the love of God. 

You may try to darken and transform this piece of casuistry as 
you will, and work up your own minds into the peaceable convic- 
tion that it is all right, and as it should be ; but be very certain 
that where the moral sense of your domestic is not already over- 
thrown, there is, at least, one bosom within which you have raised 
a war of doubts and difficulties. 

He may be feelingly alive to the beauties of what is seen and 
what is sensible ; the scenery of external nature may charm him ; 
the sublimities of a surrounding materialism may kindle and dilate 
him with images of grandeur ; even the moralities of a fellow- 
creature may engage him, and, with works of genius, may fascinate 
him into an idolatrous devotion of human power or human virtue ; 
but while he thus luxuriates and delights himself with the forms of 
derived excellence, there is no sensibility of his heart toward God. 

Jurists may be permitted with comparative safety to pile tome 
upon tome of interminable disquisition upon the motives, reasons 
and causes of just and unjust war ; metaphysicians may be suffered 
with impunity to spin the thread of their speculations until it is at- 
tenuated to a cobweb ; but for a body created for the government 
of a great nation, and for the adjustment and protection of its in- 
finitely diversified interests, it is worse than folly to speculate on the 
causes of war until the great question shall be presented for im- 
mediate action. 

it is excellent 
To have a giant's strength 7 , but 'tis tyrannous 
To use it like a giant. 

Nature inanimate employs sweet sounds 7 , 
But animated nature sweeter still, 
To soothe and satisfy the human ear. 

It is a fearful thing 
To stand upon the beetling verge, and see 
16 



182 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

Where storms and lightning, from that huge gray wall, 

Have tumbled down vast blocks, and at the base 

Dashed them in fragments, and to lay thine ear 

Over the dizzy depth, and hear the sound 

Of winds, that struggle with the woods below, 

Come up like ocean murmurs 7 ; but the scene 

Is lovely round ; a beautiful river there 

"Wanders amid the fresh and fertile meads : 

The paradise he made unto himself; 

Mining the soil of ages. 

Philosophy, indeed, on Grecian eyes 

Had poured the day, and cleared the Roman skies ; 

In other climes, perhaps, creative art, 

With power surpassing theirs, performed her part ; 

Might give more life to marble, or might fill 

The glowing tablets with a juster skill ; 

Might shine in fable, and grace idle themes 

With all the embroidery of poetic dreams : 

'Twas theirs alone to dive into the plan 

That truth and mercy had revealed to man. 

Sweet is the breath of morn, her rising sweet, 

With charm of earliest birds ; pleasant the sun, 

When first on this delightful land he speeds 

His orient beams on herb, tree, fruit, and flower, 

Glistering with dew ; fragrant the fertile earth 

After soft showers ; and sweet the coming on 

Of grateful evening mild ; then silent night 

With this her solemn bird, and this fair moon, 

And these the gems of heaven, her starry train ; 

But neither breath of morn when she ascends 

With charm of earliest birds, nor rising sun 

On this delightful land, nor herb, fruit, flower 

Glistering with dew, nor fragrance after showers, 

Nor grateful evening mild, nor silent night 

With this her solemn bird, nor walk by moon 

Or glittering starlight, without thee, is sweet. 

Though hotly pursued 7 , he escaped. 

Though they soon discovered their mistake , the mischief was 
done. 

Though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel 
unto you than that we have preached unto you 7 , let him be accursed. 

In freedom, as in most things, the ancient nations made sur- 
prisingly near approaches to the truth 7 , yet for want of some one 
great principle or instrument, came utterly short of it in practice. 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED, 183 

Some of them ventured boldly to sea, and possessed an aptitude 
for commerce, yet for want of the mariner's compass, they could 
not navigate distant oceans, but crept for ages along the shores of 
the Mediterranean. 

Though I would most willingly have continued a gratified listen- 
er, my engagements to you, gentlemen of the Adelphic Union, re- 
quire that I should trespass for a short time upon the patience of 
the audience, even at this late hour, with the utterance of some 
thoughts on that subject which, upon an anniversary like this, may 
be regarded as the only peculiarly appropriate topic of discourse. 

Though the blood of a Wallace had failed to purchase freedom for 
his country, and the conquest of Scotland had added glory to the 
triumphs of an Edward ; though the short-lived flame which burst 
from the enthusiasm of a Cromwell had served only to render still 
darker the succeeding political obscuration; though the vices of a 
Stuart had, like the pestilential soil of Egypt, produced their 
swarms of devouring locusts, gilded with titles of nobility;, the 
battles of Saratoga, Monmouth and Yorktown, proclaimed in lan- 
guage not to be misunderstood, that all men are born equal ; that the 
right to govern, must be based upon the will of the governed ;: and 
that, in this country, no distinctions can be tolerated, save those 
which flow from merit and ability. 

Rightly is it said, 

That man descends into the vale of years'; 

Yet have I thought that we might also speak, 

And not presumptuously, I trust, of age 

As of a final eminence. 

The gay will' laugh 

When thou art gone / ; the solemn brood of care 

Plod on, and each one as before will choose 

His favorite phantom / ; yet all these- shall leave 

Their mirth and their employment, and shall come 

And make their bed with thee. 

Though forced to drudge for the dregs of men 

And scrawl strange words with the barbarous pen, 

And mingle among the jostling crowd, 

Where the sons of strife are subtle and loud ; 

I often come to this quiet place, 

To breathe the airs that ruffle thy face 

And gaze upon, thee in silent dream. 

Take the wings 
Of the morning, and the Barcan desert pierce ; 
Or lose thyself in the continuous woods 
Where rolls the Oregon, and hears no> sound, 



184 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

Save his own dashing ; yet the dead are there ; 
And millions in those solitudes, since first 
The flight of years began, have laid them down 
In their last sleep. 

Though you untie the winds and let them fight 

Against the churches ; though the yesty waves 

Confound and swallow navigation up ; 

Though bladed corn be lodged, and trees blown down ; 

Though palaces and pyramids do slope 

To their foundations ; though the treasure 

Of nature's germs do tumble all' together 

Even till destruction sicken ; answer me 

To what I ask you. 

When he rose 7 , every sound was hushed. 

When you look into the Bible 7 , you see holiness and purity its 
great characteristics. 

When it speaks of God 7 , it represents him as the greatest and 
holiest being in the universe. 

When it speaks of man 7 , it speaks of his primitive integrity with 
approbation, and of his subsequent apostacy and sinfulness, with 
pity and abhorrence. 

When my spirit shall be wafted to a more friendly port 7 ; when 
my shade shall have joined the bands of those martyred heroes 
who have shed their blood on the scaffold and in the field' ; this is 
my hope. 

When this mental disease, for so it may be called without a met- 
aphor 7 , seizes irrecoverably upon the thoughts of the retiring, the 
sensitive and timid lover of books and meditation 7 , his capacity for 
useful exertion is ended' : he is thenceforward doomed to lead a life 
of fretful restlessness, alternated with querulous dejection. 

When the great Earl of Chatham first made his appearance in 
the House of Commons, and began to astonish and transport the 
British Parliament and British nation by the boldness, the force 
and range of his thoughts, and the celestial fire and pathos of his 
eloquence ; it is well known that the minister Walpole, and his 
brother Horace, from motives very easily understood, exerted all 
their wit, all their oratory, all their acquirements of every descrip- 
tion, sustained and enforced by the unfeeling insolence of office, 
to heave a mountain on his gigantic genius, and hide it from the 
world. 

When in this almost prodigal waste of life, we perceive that every 
being, from the puny insect which flutters in the evening ray, from 
the lichen which the eye can easily distinguish on the mouldering 
rock, from the fungus that springs up and reanimates ffc** ~*~~ 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 185 

dead and decomposing substances ; that every living form possesses 
a structure as perfect in its sphere, an organization sometimes as 
complex, always as truly and completely adapted to its purposes 
and modes of existence, as that of the most perfect animal : when 
we discover them all to be governed by laws as definite, as immu- 
table, as those which regulate the planetary movements ; great 
must be our admiration of the wisdom which has arranged, and 
the power which has perfected this stupendous fabric. 

When, however, we consider the wonderful connection and inter- 
dependence of all knowledge, made more and more manifest by 
every day's advance in science, so as almost to prove by an accu- 
mulation of particular examples the sublime hypothesis of the old 
philosophy, " that by a circuit of deduction, all truth out of any 
truth may be concluded ;" when we reflect how singularly adapted 
the various parts of knowledge are to the individual tastes and 
character of different men, so as to seize and draw them as with 
an irresistible mental magnetism to their several studies ; we can- 
not, I think, doubt that all that is most valuable in science or lite- 
rature, will find votaries among us, who, not content to make such 
studies the amusements of their leisure, or to devote a life of mo- 
nastic gloom to their solitary worship, will make or find for them 
a fit application. 

When he breathes his master-lay 
Of Alloway's witch-haunted wall', 
All passions in our frames of clay, 
Come thronging at his call. 
When the soft hand of sleep had closed the latch 
On the tired household of corporal sense, 
And fancy, keeping unreluctant watch, 
Was free her choicest favors to dispense ; 
I saw in wondrous perspective displayed, 
A landscape more august than happiest skill 
Of pencil, ever clothed with light and shade. 
When thoughts 
Of the last bitter hour come like a blight 
Over thy spirit, and sad images 
Of the stern agony, and shroud and pall, 
And breathless darkness, and the narrow house 
Make thee to shudder and grow sick at heart ; 
Go forth, under the open sky, and list 
To nature's teachings. 

When to the common rest that crowns our days, 
Called in the noon of life, the good man goes', 
Or full of years, and ripe in wisdom lays 

16* 



186 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

His silver temples in their last repose' ; 

When o'er the buds of youth, the death- wind blows 

And blights the fairest' ; when our bitterest tears 

Stream, as the eyes of all that loved us, close' ; 

We think on what they were, and leave the coming years. 

When man and nature mourned their first decay ; 
When every form of death and every woe 
Shot from malignant stars to earth below ; 
When murder bared his arm, and rampant war 
Yoked the red dragons of his iron car ; 
When peace and mercy, banished from the plain 
Sprung on the viewless winds to heaven again ; 
All, all forsook the friendless guilty mind, 
But hope, the charmer, lingered still behind. 

Where thou goest', I will go. 

They could not fairly pretend to reap', where they had not 
sowed. 

Where a correspondence cannot be obtained', it is necessary to 
be content with something equivalent. 

Where a community is limited in number, and forms one great 
patriarchal family, as in an Indian tribe, the injury of an individual 
is the injury of the whole. 

Where men speak affection in the strongest terms, and dislike in 
the faintest, it is a comical mixture of incidents to see disguises 
thrown aside in the one case, and increased on the other, accord- 
ing as favor or disgrace attended the respective objects of men's 
approbation or disesteem. 

Where the demands for competent ability are so pressing, and 
the temptations to employ that ability in such occupations as bring 
with them instant rewards are so great, it is quite certain that but 
few will be found inclined to spend their lives in studies which have 
no interest for others, and no perceptible bearing on private or 
public good. 

Where high the heavenly temple stands, 
The house of God not made with hands' ; 
A great High Priest our nature wears v : 
Our friend and advocate appears. 

And where his willing waves yon bright blue bay 
Sends up to kiss his decorated brim, 
And cradles, in his soft embrace, the gay 
Young group of grassy islands born of him, 
And, crowding nigh, or in the distance dim, 
Lifts the white throng of sails that bear or bring 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 187 

The commerce of the world ; with tawny limb 

And belt and beads in sunlight glistening, 

The savage urged his skiff like wild bird on the wing. 

While he is sick', he is penitent. 

While he enjoys prosperity', he shows good-nature. 

While he remained in the city, and he remained nearly two 
weeks', he scarcely went abroad. 

While most others were solicitous to procure for themselves 
fame or wealth', Wesley seemed only ambitious to do good. 

While he delights in enterprise and action, and the exercise of 
the stronger energies of the soul, she is led to engage in calmer 
pursuits, and seek for gentler employment. 

While he is summoned into the wide and busy theatre of a 
contentious world, where the love of power and the love of gain, 
in all their innumerable forms occupy and tyrannize over the soul, 
she is walking in a more peaceful sphere. 

While that venerated instrument shall continue to exist ; while 
its sacred spirit shall dwell with the people of this nation, or the 
free institutions that have grown out of it, be preserved and re- 
spected ; our children, and our children's children, to the latest 
generation, will bless the names of these illustrious benefactors, 
and cherish their memory with reverential respect. 

While then we should seek, by every proper influence, to send 
abroad the spirit and the blessings of liberty, and hail with en- 
thusiasm the arrival on our shores of all men of every name, and 
from every clime, who love liberty, and are prepared to enjoy and 
preserve it' ; as the depositaries and sentinels of that inestimable 
birthright which God has conferred upon us, let us be ever erect 
and ever wakeful N : prepared at all times to give up all, rather 
than this crown of our country, and glory of our age. 

While we perceive with gladness the happy social uses to which 
nature has made the passion for power in mankind instrumental, or 
rather, to speak with more accuracy, the uses for which nature 
has made us susceptible of this passion ; and while we know well, 
that the world, therefore, never can be without those who will be 
moved by ambition to seek the honors and dignities which it is 
necessary for the happiness of the world that some should seek ; 
it is pleasing for those, whose fortune or whose wishes lead them 
to more tranquil and happier, though less enviable occupations, to 
think, that the happiness which so many are seeking, is not confined 
by nature to the dignities which so very few only are capable of 
attaining ; that it is as wide as the situations of men ; and that 
while no rank is too high for the enjoyment of virtue, there is no 
rank that can be regarded as too low for it. 



188 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

And while that spot so wild and lone and fair, 

A look of glad and innocent beauty wore', 

And peace was on the earth and in the air', 

The warrior lit the pile, and bound the captive there. 

Yet while with close delight and inward pride, 
Which from the world my careful soul shall hide, 
I see thee, lord and end of my desire, 
Exalted high as virtue can require, 
With power invested and with pleasure cheered, 
Sought by the good, by the oppressor feared, 
Loaded and blest with all the affluent store 
Which human vows at smoking shrines adore ; 
Grateful and humble grant me to employ 
My life subservient only to thy joy. 

Since such is the fact', you have no cause for solicitude. 

Since God is a moral governor and must delight in and reward 
virtuous tempers', there is a manifest moral propriety in his making 
these tempers the antecedent to his bestowment of blessings. 

Since any event whatever may be the antecedent to any other 
event whatever', we are surely not competent to say that prayer 
cannot be the antecedent to the bestowment of favors, any more 
than to say this of any thing else. 

Since every impure, revengeful, deceitful or envious thought, is 
a violation of our obligations to our Maker, and much more, the 
words and actions to which these thoughts give rise' ; and since 
even the imperfect conscience of every individual accuses him of 
countless instances, if not of habits, of such violation' ; if the pre- 
ceding observations be just, it is manifest, that our present moral 
condition involves the elements of much that is alarming. 

Since worth, he cries, in these degenerate days, 
Wants e'en the cheap reward of empty praise' ; 
In those cursed walls, devote to vice and gain, 
Since unrewarded science toils in vain' ; 
v Since hope but soothes to double my distress, 
And every moment leaves my little less' ; 
While yet my steady steps no staff sustains, 
And life still vigorous revels in my veins' ; 
Grant me, kind Heaven, to find some happier place, 
Where honesty and sense are no disgrace. 

3d form : with neither of the correlative words expressed. 

It is sown in corruption' ; it is raised in incorruption. 
It is sown a natural body' ; it is raised a spiritual body. 



1 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 189 

Were it true that the Gospel constrains men' ; its constraint 
would be preferable to that of fashion and vice. 

Affected passion, intense expression, the pomp of declamation, 
all may aspire after it' ; they cannot reach it. 

Had they informed themselves of all the circumstances, hazards 
and demands of the enterprise before engaging in it' ; had they 
after engaging in it, listened to the advice of those who were better 
informed than themselves' ; or had they withdrawn from it, when 
they discovered the obstacles to its success' ; they might have es- 
caped dishonor. 

Did faithful history compel us to cast on all England united, 
the reproach of those measures that drove our fathers to arms ; 
and were it, in consequence, the unavoidable effect of these cele- 
brations to revive the feelings of revolutionary times in the bosoms 
of the aged ; to kindle those feelings anew in the susceptible 
hearts of the young : it would still be our duty, on every be- 
coming occasion, in the strongest colors, and in the boldest lines 
we can command, to retrace the picture of the times that tried 
men's souls. 

Could the genius of our country reveal to our astonished view 
the future glories which await the progress of confederated Ameri- 
ca ; could he show us the countless millions who will swarm in 
the wide-spread valleys of the west, tasting of happiness and 
sharing the blessing of equal laws ; could he unroll the pages of 
her history, and permit us to see the fierce struggles of her fac- 
tions, the rapid mutations of her empire, the bloody fields of her 
triumphs and her disasters ; could he crowd these awful visions 
upon our souls ; we should see that all the prosperity that awaits 
us depends on the supremacy of mind : on the cultivation of intel- 
lect : on the diffusion of knowledge and the arts. 

Had Milton confined himself to the studies of his library or the 
halls of his university ; had he not thrown himself into the hottest 
conflicts of the day ; had he not stood forth the terrible champion 
of freedom of opinion and of republican liberty, raising on high his 
spirit-stirring voice in their defence in worst extremes, and " on the 
perilous verge of battle where it raged ;" had he not participated 
in counsel, in act, and in suffering with England's boldest spirits ; 
had he not thus felt in himself, and seen in others, the " might of 
the unconquerable will," the unshaken, unseduced, unterrified con- 
stancy of faithful zeal and love ; he would not have gained that 
insight into the seemly and generous arts and affairs, that intimate 
acquaintance with the nobler parts of human nature that made him 
the greatest of poets. 



]90 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED 

Doubtless he'll see us to the city gates' ; 
'Twill be the least respect that he can pay 
To his fallen rival. 

Would I describe a preacher, such as Paul, 

Were he on earth, would hear, approve, and own' ; 

Paul should himself direct me. 

Hadst thou but shook thy head, or made a pause, 

When I spake darkly what I purposed ; 

Or turned an eye of doubt upon my face, 

And bid me tell my tale in express words ; 

Deep shame had struck me dumb, and made me break off; 

And those thy fears might have wrought fears in me. 

Rejecting the vain systems of the schoolmen', he adhered to the 
plain word of God. 

Seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of 
witnesses', let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so 
easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set 
before us. 

Having, therefore, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood 
of Jesus, by a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for 
us through the veil, that is to say, his flesh' ; and having an high 
priest over the house of God' ; let us draw near with a true heart v : 
in full assurance of faith N ; having our hearts sprinkled from an evil 
conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water. 

Disappointed and disgusted', they are now tempted to ascribe 
their disappointment to the republican institutions of their country. 

Trained and instructed', strengthened by wise discipline and 
guided by pure principle', it ripens into an intelligence but little 
lower than the angels. 

Deeply impressed with the greatness of that love of God, which 
is from everlasting, the herald of grace adopted a strain of impas- 
sioned earnestness in the invitations which he addressed to the 
irresolute and fearful. 

Vexed at the arbitrary proceedings of the assembly ; willing to 
escape from a town where good people pointed with horror at his 
freedom ; indignant also at the tyranny of his brother, who, as a 
passionate master, often beat his apprentice ; Benjamin Franklin, 
then but seventeen years old, sailed clandestinely for New York. 

Sent to defend an extensive mountain frontier with forces wholly 
inadequate to the object, the sport of contradictory orders from a 
civil governor inexperienced in war, defrauded by contractors, tor- 
mented with arrogant pretensions of subaltern officers in the royal 
army, weakened by wholesale desertions in the hour of danger, 
misrepresented by jealous competitors, traduced, maligned; the 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 191 

youthful commander-in-chief was obliged to foresee every thing, to 
create every thing, to endure every thing, to effect every thing, 
without encouragement, without means, without co-operation. 

A professed Catholic, he imprisoned the Pope. 

The orphan of Saint Louis, he became the adopted child of the 
Republic. 

Grand, gloomy, and peculiar, he sat upon the throne a sceptred 
hermit wrapped in the solitude of his own originality. 

A royalist, a republican, and an emperor ; a Mohammedan, a 
Catholic, and a patron of the synagogue ; a subaltern and a sov- 
ereign ; a traitor and a tyrant ; a Christian and an infidel ; he was 
through all his vicissitudes, the same stern, impatient, inflexible 
original": the same mysterious, incomprehensible self: the man 
without a model and without a shadow. 

At that fortunate age when the physical and intellectual powers 
are displayed in the highest perfection, and the hasty impulses of 
youth, without any loss of its vigor, are brought under control of 
large experience in public affairs ; with a mind capable of descend- 
ing to minute details, as well as conceiving a grand system of 
national policy ; calm and deliberate in judgment, self-possessed and 
fluent in debate, of dignified presence, never unmindful of the cour- 
tesies becoming social and public intercourse, and of political integ- 
rity unimpeachable ; he was admirably fitted for the post of leader 
of the 27th Congress. 

Confused and struck with silence at the deed', 
He flies, but, trembling, fails to fly with speed. 

Consulting what I feel within, 
In times when most existence with herself 
Is satisfied', I cannot but believe, 
That, far as kindly nature hath free scope, 
And reason's sway predominates, even so far, 
Country, society, and even time itself, 
That saps the individual's bodily frame, 
And lays the generations low in dust, 
Do, by the Almighty Ruler's grace, partake 
Of one maternal spirit^ : bringing forth 
And cherishing with ever constant love, 
That tires not, nor betrays. 

Seek', and ye shall find. 

I was hungry', and ye gave me no meat. 

He enjoyed fine opportunities to establish a character', and he 
neglected them. 

Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness' ; and 
all these things shall be added unto you. 



192 The bend, sweeps, slides and closes applied. 

The idea of God, it is said, may be expunged from the heart of 
man ; and that heart will be the seat still of the same constitutional 
impulses. 

They feel that they have incurred no outrageous forfeiture of 
character among men ; and this instils a treacherous complacency 
in their own hearts. 

Here is a case, in which the voice, that cometh forth from the 
tribunal of public opinion, pronounces one thing ; and the voice, 
that cometh forth from the sanctuary of God, pronounces another. 

Let the sinner then look to God through the medium of such a 
revelation ; and the sight which meets him there may well tame 
the obstinacy of that heart, which had wrapped itself up in im- 
penetrable hardness against the force of every other consideration. 

Let me be made to understand,, that God has passed by my 
transgressions, and generously admitted me into the privileges and 
the rewards of obedience ; I see in this, a tenderness, and a mercy, 
and a love, for his xreatures, which, if blended at the same time 
with all that is high and honorable in the more august attributes 
of his nature, have the effect of presenting him to my mind, and of 
drawing out my heart in moral regard to him, as a most amiable 
and estimable object of contemplation. 

Give me a man who seizes with ravenous approbation all that I 
have to bestow, and who hoards it, or feeds upon it, or in any way 
rejoices over it, without one grateful movement of his heart toward 
me ; and you lay before me a character, not merely unlike, but 
diametrically opposite, to the character of him who obtains the very 
same gift, and, perhaps, derives from the use of it, an equal, or a 
greater degree of enjoyment, to the sensitive part of his nature, but 
who, in addition to all this, has thought, and affection, and the 
higher principles of his nature, excited by the consideration of the 
giver. 

The simple truths of the Gospel may enter with acceptance into 
the mind of a peasant, and there w^ork all the proper influences on 
his heart and character which the Bible ascribes to them ; and yet 
he may be utterly incapable of tracing that series of inward move- 
ments, by which he is carried onwards from a belief in the truth, 
to all those moral and affectionate regards, which mark a genuine 
disciple of the truth. 

Let him who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, 
shine into our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of his 
own glory, in the face of Jesus Christ ; let us only look upon him 
as God in Christ reconciling the world unto himself, and not im- 
puting unto them trespasses ; let him, without expunging the char- 
acters of truth and majesty from that one aspect of perfect excel- 
lence which belongs to him ; let him, in his own unsearchable wis- 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 193 

dom, devise a way by which he can both bring them out in the eye 
of sinners with brighter illumination, and make these sinners feel 
that they are safe ; let him lift off from the men of this guilty world, 
the burden of his violated law, and make it honorable ; let him 
publish a full release from all its penalties, but in such a way as 
that the truth which proclaimed them, and the justice which should 
execute them, shall remain untainted under the dispensation of 
mercy ; let him, instead of awaking the sword of vengeance against 
us, awake it against a sufferer of such worth and dignity, that his 
blood shall be the atonement of a world, and by pouring out his 
soul unto death, he shall make the pardon of the transgressor meet 
and be at one with the everlasting righteousness of God ; in a word, 
instead of the character of God being lighted up in the eye of the 
sinner by the fire of his own indignation, let it through the demon- 
stration of the Spirit be illustrated and shone upon by the mild and 
peaceful light of the Sun of Righteousness; and then may the sinner 
look in peace and safety on the manifested character of God. 



GENERAL NOTE. I. 



The single compact sentence, with or without correlative words 
expressed, often appears in a fragmentary form. If either of the 
correlative words is expressed, the nature of the sentence and the 
delivery will be obvious ; for the mere fact of its being fragmentary 
changes neither the one nor the other. When the correlative words 
are wanting, the nature of the sentence may not be at once appar- 
ent ; and though the compact delivery should be plainly required, 
the cause of this, may not be suspected. I subjoin one or two ex- 
amples : they are printed in italic. 

Vol. We found you naked. 

Van. And you found us free. 

Vol. Would you be temperate once, and hear me out'. 

Van. Speak things that honest men may hear with temper. 
[Enter attendant and Malek Adhel.] 

Sal. Leave us together. [Exit attend.] (Aside.) / should know 
That form. 

Judge Bronson. Well, Mr. Cooper, but he didn't publish it. 

Mr. Cooper. That was not necessary to make out the libel. 

Judge B. (Smiling.) Pretty near it, though. 

The first of these examples, if complete and regularly constructed, would probably read thus : 
If you would, &c, then you would, &c. : the second, thus : Therefore I should know that form, 
because its proportions or features are familiar : the third thus : Pretty near it, though that wae 
not necessary to make out, i. e. absolutely necessary to make out the libel. 

17 



194 



GENERAL NOTE. II. 



Single compact sentences, like simple and compound close declar- 
atives, are often employed as indirect interrogatives with or without 
interrogative punctuation : e. g. 

Bos. You 11 marry me, if I be willing f 

Phe. That would I, should I die the hour after. 

He admitted the validity of the will, when you produced it. Yes, 
but with hesitation. 

2. Double Compact. 

Rule VIII. The first part of a double compact sentence is de- 
livered like the first part of a single compact : the remaining part 
or parts, like the parts of a perfect loose sentence. (See Loose 
Sentence below.) 

1. The parts separately considered may have all the varieties of construction which distin- 
guish the parts of single compact. (See Remarks under the Rule for the delivery of Single 
Compact Sentences, above.) 

2. When the first part is employed in connection with the other parts and consists of two or 
more members, the last of these, like the last of a similar series in the first part of a single 
compact, may be terminated with partial close; in which case, the delivery will conform to 
Fig. 14, c : (See Plate :) when the first part is employed alone, the last of the series must neces- 
sarily terminate with perfect close. 

3. When no or nay ends a series of members in the first part, it should always be delivered 
like the first member ; and the member immediately preceding it, should end with partial 
close. The reason of this is, that no, in such a case, to all intents begins the sentence auew. 

Examples. 

1. Of double compact with all the parts. 

Swear not by heaven' ; for it is God's throne' ; but let your com- 
munication be yea, yea ; and nay, nay v ; for whatsoever is more than 
these, cometh of evil. 

It was not an eclipse that caused the darkness at the crucifixion 
of our Lord' ; for the sun and moon were not relatively in a posi- 
tion to produce an eclipse^ ; but a direct interposition of God v ; for 
on no other supposition can we account for it. 

2. With the fourth part omitted. 

And not as it was by one that sinned, so also is the free gift' ; 
for the judgment was by one unto condemnation ; but the free 
gift is of many offences unto justification. 

They had not come hither in search of gain', for the soil was 
sterile and unproductive^ ; but they had come that they might wor- 
ship God according to the dictates of their own consciences. 

It was not enough that our fathers were of England' ; the mas- 
ters of Ireland and the lords of Hindostan are of England too v ; but 
our fathers were Englishmen, aggrieved, persecuted and banished. 

We do not say that his error lies in being a good member of so- 
ciety' ; this though only a circumstance at present, is a very fortu- 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 195 

nate one* : the error lies in his having discarded the authority of 
God, as his legislator* ; or rather, in his never having admitted the 
influence of that authority over his mind, heart or practice. 

He does not satisfy himself with barely moving on to a higher 
point in the scale of human attainment, and then sitting down with 
the sentiment that it is enough ; he never counts it enough : the 
practical attitude of the believer is that of one who is ever looking 
forward: the practical movement of the believer is that of one 
who is ever pressing forward. 

It is not by an utterance of rash and sweeping totality to refuse 
him the possession of what is kind in sympathy, or what is digni- 
fied in principle ; this were in the face of all observation : it is to 
charge him direct with his utter disloyalty to God : it is to convict 
him of treason against the majesty of heaven : it is to press home 
upon him the impiety of not caring about God 

Note. In double compact sentences of this form, comprising two or more members in the 
first part, it is not unusual to find the second part distributed among them ; that is, to find each 
of these members followed by a second part of its own : e. g. 

It was not their rank which gave the apostles such marvellous 
success in spreading Christianity in every part of the Roman em- 
pire', for they sprang from the lowest order of the people* ; it was 
not their wealth', for they were poor* ; it was not their learning', 
for they were unlettered men* ; but it was the miraculous powers 
with which they were endowed* ; and the wisdom of God, and the 
power of God unto salvation, which attended them. 

It is not that we wish our sister church were swept away, for 
we honestly think, that the overthrow of that establishment would 
be a severe blow to the Christianity of our land ; it is not that we 
envy that great hierarchy the splendor of her endowments, for 
better a dinner of herbs, when surrounded by the love of parish- 
ioners, than a preferment of stalled dignity and strife therewith ; it 
is not either that we look upon her ministers as having at all dis- 
graced themselves by their rapacity, for look to the encroachments 
upon them, and you will see that they have carried their privile- 
ges with the most exemplary forbearance and moderation ; but from 
these very encroachments do we infer how lawless a human being- 
will become, when emancipated from the bond of his own interest. 

I am not the panegyrist of England 7 ;„I am not dazzled by her 
riches nor awed by her power' ; the sceptre, the mitre, and the 
coronet, stars, garters and blue ribands, seem to me poor things for 
great men to contend for* ; nor is my admiration awakened by her 
armies mustered for the battles of Europe, her navies overshadow- 
ing the ocean, nor her empire grasping the farthest east* ; it is 
these, and the price of guilt and blood by which tbey are main- 
tained, which are the cause why no friend of liberty can salute her 
with undivided affections* ; but it is the refuge of free principles, 



196 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

though often persecuted^ ; the school of religious liberty, the more 
precious for the struggles to which it has been called v ; the tombs 
of those who have reflected honor on all who speak the English 
tongue x : it is the birthplace of our fathers^ ; the home of the pil- 
grims v : it is these which I love and venerate in England. 

3. With the third and fourth part omitted. 

We must not impute the delay to indifference', for delay may 
be designed to promote our happiness. 

The present life is not wholly prosaic, precise, tame and finite' ; 
to the gifted eye, it abounds in the poetic. 

Not all the chapters of human history are thus important' ; the 
annals of our race have been filled up with incidents which convey 
no instruction. 

We dare not make ourselves of the number, or compare ourselves 
with some that commend themselves ; for they measuring them- 
selves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, 
are not wise. 

It is not true that the poet paints a life which does not exist ; 
he only extracts and concentrates, as it were, life's ethereal essence, 
arrests and condenses its volatile fragrance, brings together its scat- 
tered beauties, and prolongs its more refined, but evanescent joys. 

No matter in what language his doom may have been pronoun- 
ced ; no matter what complexion, incompatible with freedom, an 
Indian or African sun may have burnt upon him ; no matter in 
what disastrous battles his liberty may have been cloven down ; no 
matter with what solemnities he may have been devoted upon the 
altar of slavery ; the moment he touches the sacred soil of Britain, 
the altar and the god sink together in the dust; his soul walks 
abroad in her own majesty ; his body swells beyond the measure of 
his chains, that burst from around him ; and he stands redeemed, re- 
generated and disenthralled by the universal spirit of emancipation. 

It is not that Christ is set forth a propitiation for their sins ; it 
is not that they stagger not at the promise of God, because of un- 
belief ; it is not that the love of him is shed abroad in their hearts 
by the Holy Ghost ; it is not that they carry along with them any 
consciousness whatever of a growing conformity to the image of 
the Saviour ; it is not that their calling and election are made sure 
to them, by the successful diligence with which they are cultiva- 
ting the various accomplishments of the Christian character ; there 
is not one of these ingredients, will we venture to say, which enters 
into the satisfaction that many feel with their own prospects, and 
into the complacency they have in their own attainments, and into 
their opinion that God is looking to them with indulgence and 
friendship. 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 197 

Nay, look not big, nor stamp, nor stare, nor fret ; 
I will be master of what is mine own. 

It is not now as it hath been of yore ; 

Turn wheresoe'er I may, 

By night or day, 
The things which I have seen, I now can see no more. 

Thou art no child of fancy ; thou 

The very look dost wear, 
That gave enchantment to a brow, 

Wreathed with luxuriant hair. 

Grudge not, ye rich, (since luxury must have 
His dainties, and the world's more numerous half 
Lives by contriving delicates for you,) 
Grudge not the cost ; ye little know the cares, 
The vigilance, the labor, and the skill 
That day and night are exercised, and hang 
Upon the ticklish balance of suspense, 
That ye may garnish your profuse regales 
With summer fruits brought forth by wintry suns. 

4. With the second, third and fourth omitted. 

You would not select the public firebrand"'; you would not seek 
your seconds in the tavern, or in the brother'; you would not in- 
quire out the man who was oppressed with debts, contracted by 
licentiousness, debauchery, and every species of profligacy. [Who, 
sir, were Caesar's seconds in his undertakings ?] 

[And what is our country $'] It is not the East with her hills 
and valleys, with her countless sails, and the rocky ramparts of her 
shores'; it is not the North with her thousand villages, and her 
harvest home, with her frontiers of the lake and the ocean'; it is 
not the West with her forest-sea, with her beautiful Ohio, and her 
majestic Missouri'; nor yet is it the South, opulent in the mimic 
snow of the cotton, in the rich plantation of the rustling cane, and 
in the golden robes of the rice-fields. 

They did not know, that every town and village in America had 
discussed the great questions at issue for itself, and in its town- 
meetings and committees of correspondence and safety, had come 
to the resolution that America must not be taxed by England ; the 
English government did not understand, (we hardly understood, 
ourselves, till we saw it in action,) the operation of a state of so- 
ciety, where every man is or may be a freeholder, a voter for every 
elective office, a candidate for every one ; where the means of a 
good education are universally accessible ; where the artificial dis- 

17* 



198 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

tinctions of society are known but in a slight degree ; where glaring 
contrasts of condition are rarely met with ; where few are raised 
by the extreme of wealth above their fellow men, and fewer sunk 
by the extreme of poverty beneath it : the English ministry had 
not reasoned on the natural growth of such a soil ; that it could 
not permanently bear either a colonial or monarchical government ; 
that the only true and native growth of such a soil was a perfect 
independence, and intelligent republicanism. 

5. With the second and fourth omitted. 

I am not come to destroy 7 , but to fulfil. 

Labor not for the meat that perisheth', but for that meat which 
endureth unto everlasting life. 

It was not enough for him to stand on the defensive'; he felt 
that he must become the assailant, and return blow for blow. 

The method of our salvation is not left to the random caprices 
of human thought, and human fancy'; it is a method devised and 
made known to us by unsearchable wisdom. 

He is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is that circumcision 
which is outward in the fleshy ; but he is a Jew who is one in- 
wardly N ; and circumcision is that of the heart v : in the spirit, and 
not in the letter ; whose praise is not of men, but of G-od. 

We do not recognise in her the Christian who has attained to 
the perfect liberty of God's children, but the exact type of those 
souls, at all times so numerous, and especially among her sex, who, 
drawn powerfully to look to heaven, have not strength sufficient to 
disengage themselves entirely from the bondage of earth. 

We pay no homage at the tomb of kings to sublime our feelings, 
we trace no line of illustrious ancestors to support our dignity, we 
recur to no usages, sanctioned by the authority of the great, to 
protract our rejoicing^; no';* we love liberty : we glory in the 
rights of men : we glory in independence. 

His characters are not modified by the customs of particular 
places, unpractised by the rest of the world, by the peculiarities of 
studies and professions, which can operate but upon small num- 
bers, or by the accidents of transient fashions, or temporary opin- 
ions ; they are the genuine, progeny of common humanity : such as 
the world will always supply, and observation will always find. 

No wars have ravaged these lands and depopulated these 
villages' ; no civil discords have been felt' ; no disputed succession' ; 
no religious rage'; no merciless enemy*; no affliction of Providence, 
which, while it scourged for the moment, cut off the sources of re- 
suscitation'; no voracious and poisonous monsters^; no';f all this 

* We do nothing like this, but, &c. ) See the Second Sentence below, and 3d Note 
+ It was not any of these, but all, <fcc. ) Rule. 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 199 

has been accomplished by the friendship, generosity and kindness 
of the English nation. 

Society, in this country, has not made its progress like Chinese 
skill, by a greater acuteness of ingenuity in trifles' ; it has not 
merely lashed itself to an increased speed round the old circles of 
thought and action^; but it has assumed a new character^ it has 
raised itself from beneath governments to a participation in govern- 
ments x ; it has mixed moral and political objects with the daily 
pursuits of individual men x ; and, with a freedom and strength before 
altogether unknown, it has applied to these objects the whole 
power of the human understanding. 

We do not pray to instruct or advise God ; not to tell him news, 
or inform him of our wants ; nor do we pray by dint of argument 
to persuade God and bring him to our bent ; nor that, by fair 
speech, we may cajole him, or move his affections toward us by 
pathetical orations N ; not for any such purpose are we obliged to 
pray'; but because it becometh and behooveth us so to do ; because 
it is a proper instrument of bettering, ennobling and perfecting our 
souls ; because it breedeth most holy affections, and pure satisfac- 
tions, and worthy resolutions : because it fitteth us for the enjoy- 
ment of happiness, and leadeth us thither : for such ends devotion 
is prescribed.* 

Then waited not the murderer for the night', 
But smote his brother down in the bright day. 

Not for these sad issues 
Was man created', but to obey the law 
Of life and hope and action. 

Nor rural sights alone', but rural sounds 
Exhilarate the spirit, and restore 
The tone of languid nature. 

Man hath no part in all this glorious work ; 

The hand, that built the firmament, hath heaved 

And smoothed these verdant swells, and sown these slopes 

With herbage : planted their island-groves, 

And hedged them round with forests. 

He, who has tamed the elements, shall not live 
The slave of his own passions ; he, whose eye 
Unwinds the eternal dances in the sky, 
And in the abyss of brightness dares to span 

* The nors in this sentence are equivalent to intensive particles, (see Rule VII, Exc. 3,) 
but the tendency to partial close should be resisted until the last of them is reached. The 
last member of the first part is equivalent to no simply. (See Rule VIII, 3.)J 



200 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

The sun's broad circle, rising yet more high, 
In God's magnificent works his will shall scan. 

Then let us not think hard 
One easy prohibition, when we enjoy 
Free leave so large to all things else, and choice 
Unlimited of manifold delights ; 
But let us ever praise him, and extol 
His bounty : following our delightful task 
To prune these growing plants, and tend these flowers. 

I do not mean to wake the gloomy form 
Of superstition, dressed in wisdom's garb, 
To damp your tender hopes ; I do not mean 
To bid the jealous thunderer fire the heavens, 
Or shapes infernal rend the groaning earth, 
To fright you from your joys ; my cheerful song 
With better omens calls you to the field : 
Pleased with your generous ardor in the chase, 
And warm like you. 

The Sovereign Maker said, 
That not in humble, nor in brief delight, 
Not in the fading echoes of renown, 
Power's purple robes, nor pleasure's flowery lap, 
The soul should find enjoyment ; but from these, 
Turning disdainful to an equal good, 
Through all the ascent of things to enlarge her view, 
Till every bound at length should disappear, 
And infinite perfection close the scene. 

It is not much that to the fragrant blossom, 

The ragged brier should change, the bitter fir 

Distil Arabian myrrh ; 

Nor that, upon the wintry desert's bosom, 

The harvest should rise plenteous, and the swain 

Bear home the abundant grain : 

But come and see the bleak high hills and mountains, 

Thick to their tops with roses : come and see 

Leaves on the dry dead tree : 

The perished plant, set out by living fountains 

Grows fruitful ; and beauteous branches rise, 

Forever, toward the skies. 

6. With the second alone omitted. 
Lay not up for 3 7 ours elves treasures upon earth, where moth 
and rust corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal',* 




THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 201 



but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven*; where neither moth 
nor rust corrupt, and where thieves do not break through and 
steal*; for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. 

Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should 
obey it in the lusts thereof, neither* yield ye your members as in- 
struments of unrighteousness unto sin ; but yield yourselves unto 
God as those that are alive from the dead, and your members, as 
instruments of righteousness unto God ; for sin shall not have do- 
minion over you. 

Nay'; but it's really true*: 
I had it from good hands, and so may you. 

[Officer. [What may this mean? let us pass on : we stop not. 

Whate'er betide.] 
Bayner. Nay', but you do*; for here there is a power 

Stronger than law or judgment. 



III. THE LOOSE DECLARATIVE SENTENCE. 

Rule IX. The parts of a loose sentence, whether perfect or 
imperfect, should be successively delivered in a very slightly lower 
tone of voice, and terminated with partial close, except the last ; 
which of course ends with perfect close. (See Plate, Fig. 11, 
a, b, c.) 

The parts separately considered must, be delivered like the species or variety to which they 
belong ; and I need scarcely say, they may belong to any of the species and varieties of de- 
clarative sentences hitherto passed under review. Thus, in the first example below, we have 
a single compact, 2d form, in the first part, and a close in the second : in the second exam- 
ple, a close in the first, a fragmentary simple declarative in the second, and a complete sim- 
ple declarative in the third part : in the third example, we have a simple declarative in the 
first part, and the first part of a double compact comprising three members, in the second. 
State the nature of the sentences in the parts of the succeeding examples. 

The first part of this rule applies more particularly to loose sentences of no great length. 
When long, it will be found necessary to deliver them, except toward the last, nearly in the 
same tone. 

For perfect and partial close, see Ch. III. Modulation. 

1. Perfect Loose. 

Examples. 

I speak as to wise men*: judge ye what I say. 

And now abideth faith, hope, charity*: these three*; but the 
greatest of these is charity. 

Receive us N : we have wronged no man', we have corrupted no 
man', we have defrauded no man. 

I am crucified with Christ*: nevertheless I live*: yet not I, but 
Christ liveth in me v ; and the life which I now live in the flesh, I 



See preceding note on nor. 



202 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave 
himself for me. 

Go ye, therefore, and teach all nations^: baptizing them in the 
name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghosts 
teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded 
you x ; and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the 
world. 

Christians, familiar with the principles of justice, desire to see 
them adhered to in proceedings against others and themselves v ; 
but those, who are accustomed to act according to their own will, 
are much surprised, when required to proceed regularly and agree- 
ably to form and law. 

Liberty was theirs as men x : without it, they did not esteem 
themselves men v : more than any other privilege or possession, it 
was essential to their happiness, for it was essential to their origi- 
nal nature v ; and therefore they preferred it above wealth and ease 
and country N ; and that they might enjoy and exercise it fully, they 
forsook houses and lands and kindred. 

A man may be led to precisely the same conduct, on the impulse 
of many different principles : he may be gentle, because it is a 
prescription of the divine law; or, he may be gentle, because he 
is naturally of a timid or indolent constitution ; or, he may be 
gentle, because he sees it to be an amiable gracefulness, with 
which he wishes to adorn his character ; or, he may be gentle, 
because it is the ready way of perpetuating the friendship of those 
around him ; or, he may be gentle, because taught to observe it, 
as a part of courtly and fashionable deportment ; and what was 
implanted by education may come in time to be confirmed by 
habit and experience : it is only under the first of these principles, 
that there is any religion in gentleness. 

They left all these : they left England ; which, whatever it 
might have been called, was not to them a land of freedom : they 
launched forth on the pathless ocean : the wide, fathomless ocean, 
soiled not by the earth beneath, and bounded, all round and above, 
only by heaven ; and it seemed to them like that better and sub- 
limer freedom, which their country knew not, but of which they 
had the conception and image in their hearts ; and after a toilsome 
'and painful voyage, they came to a hard and wintry coast ; un- 
fruitful and desolate, but unguarded and boundless : its calm 
silence interrupted not the ascent of their prayers : it had no eyes 
to watch, no ears to hearken, no tongues to report of them : here 
again there was an answer to their soul's desire ; and they were 
satisfied and gave thanks : they saw that they were free and the 
desert smiled. 

Our object is not to recover the holy sepulchre from the pos- 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 203 

session of heretics, but to make known the death of him who 
descended to it ; to wrest the keys of empire from the king of 
terrors : the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, as the sword, 
the spear, the battle-axe ; but spiritual, as the doctrines of the 
gospel exhibited in the sermons of our missionaries : the line of our 
march will not be marked by ensanguined fields, and the reign of 
desolation, but the comforts of civilization, and the blessings of 
Christianity : we shall not be followed in our career by the groans 
of dying warriors, and the shrieks of bereaved widows ; but by 
the songs of redeemed sinners, and the shouts of enraptured 
angels ; while our trophies will consist, not of bits of the cross, or 
shreds of the Virgin's robe ; but in the rejected idols of Pomare, 
with the regenerated souls of those who once adored him. 

If you would not like him to do it for you; then there is 
nothing in the compass of this sentence now before you, that at 
all obligates you to do it for him : if )^ou would not like your 
neighbor to make so romantic a surrender to your interests, as to 
offer you to the extent of half his fortune ; then there is nothing 
in that part of the gospel code which now engages us, that ren- 
ders it imperative upon you to make the same offer to your neigh- 
bor : if you would positively recoil, in all the reluctance of 
ingenuous delicacy, from the selfishness of laying on a relation the 
burden of the expenses of all your family ; then this is not the 
good office that you would have him do unto you ; and this, there- 
fore, is not the good office which the text prescribes you to do 
unto him : if you have, such consideration for another's ease, and 
another's convenience, that you could not take the ungenerous 
advantage of so much of his time for your accommodation, there 
may be other verses in the Bible which point to a greater sacri- 
fice, on your part, for the good of others, than you would like 
these others to make for yours ; but, most assuredly, this is not 
the verse which imposes that sacrifice : if you would not that 
others should do these things on your account ; then these things 
form no part of " the all things whatsoever" you would that men 
should do unto you ; and, therefore, they form no part of " the 
all things whatsoever " that you are required, by this verse, to do 
for them. 

Contrasted faults through all his manners reign*: 
Though poor', luxurious v ; though submissive', vain v ; 
Though grave', yet trifling*; zealous', yet untrue*; 
And e'en in penance, planning sins anew. 

But misery brought in love v : in passion's strife, 
Man gave his heart to mercy, pleading long, 
And sought out gentle deeds to gladden life*: 



204 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

The weak, against the sons of spoil and wrong, 
Banded, and watched their hamlets and grew strong. 

He who felt the wrong, and had the might, 
His own avenger, girt himself to slay x : 
Beside the path the unburied carcass lay v : 
The shepherd, by the fountain of the glen, 
Fled, while the robber swept his flocks away, 
And slew his babes. 

So spake the cherub ; and his grave rebuke, 
Severe in youthful beauty, added grace 
Invincible : abashed the devil stood, 
And felt how awful goodness is, and saw 
Virtue in her shape how lovely : saw and pined 
His loss ; but chiefly to find here observed 
His lustre visibly impaired : yet seemed 
Undaunted. 

To him, who in the love of nature holds 
Communion with her visible forms, she speaks 
A various language : for his gayer hours 
She has a voice of gladness, and a smile 
And eloquence of beauty ; and she glides 
Into his darker musings, with a mild 
And healing sympathy, that steals away 
Their sharpness, ere he is aware. 

Still Heaven deferred the hour ordained to rend, 

From saintly rottenness the sacred stole ; 

And cowl and worshipped shrine could still defend 

The wretch with felon stains upon his soul ; 

And crimes were set to sale ; and hard his dole, 

Who could not bribe a passage to the skies ; 

And vice, beneath the mitre's kind control, 

Sinned gayly on, and grew to giant size : 

Shielded by priestly power, and watched by priestly eyes, 

Look now abroad : another race has filled 
These populous borders : wide the wood recedes, 
And towns shoot up, and fertile realms are tilled : 
The land is full of harvests, and green meads: 
Streams numberless, that many a fountain feeds, 
Shine, disembowered, and give to sun and breeze 
Their virgin waters : the full region leads 
New colonies forth, that toward the western seas, 
Spread, like a rapid flame, among autumnal trees. 



J 
THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 205 

The more thou dam'st it up, the more it burns : 

The current that with gentle murmur glides, 

Thou knowest, being stopped, impatiently doth rage ; 

But, when his fair course is not hindered, 

He makes sweet music with the enamelled stones : 

Giving a gentle kiss to every sedge 

He overtaketh in his pilgrimage ; 

And so by many winding nooks he strays, 

With willing sport, to the wild ocean. 

Peace to the just man's memory : let it grow 

Greener with years, and blossom through the flight 

Of ages ; let the mimic canvas show 

His calm, benevolent features ; let the light 

Stream on his deeds of love, that shunned the sight 

Of all but heaven ; and, in the book of fame, 

The glorious record of his virtues write, 

And hold it up to men and bid them claim 

A palm like his, and catch from him the hallowed flame. 

At midnight in his guarded tent, 

The Turk was dreaming of the hour 

When Greece, her knee in suppliance bent, 

Should tremble at his power : 

In dreams, through camp and court, he bore 

The trophies of a conqueror : 

In dreams his song of triumph heard : * 

Then wore his monarch's signet ring : 

Then pressed that monarch's throne, a king : 

As wild his thoughts and gay of wing, 

As Eden's garden bird. 

In all the modern languages, she was 
Exceedingly well versed, and had devoted 
To their attainment, far more time than has, 
By the best teachers, lately been allotted ; 
For she had taken lessons, twice a week, 
For a full month in each ; and she could speak 
French and Italian, equally as well 
As Chinese, Portuguese, or German ; and 
What is still more surprising, she could spell 
Most of our longest English words, off hand : 
Was quite familiar in low Dutch and Spanish, 
And thought of studying modern Greek and Danish. 
18 



206 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

2. Imperfect Loose. 
Examples. 

History, as it has been written, is the genealogy of princes' : the 
field-book of conquerors. 

Christianity came prepared for a gradual work' : to perform its 
labor as sunshine and the moisture perform theirs' : to bring its 
ideas to perfection among men, as the seed is brought forth to the 
harvest. 

And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith, virtue' ; 
and to virtue, knowledge' ; and to knowledge, temperance' ; and 
to temperance, patience' ; and to patience, godliness' ; and to god- 
liness, brotherly kindness' ; and to brotherly kindness, charity. 

Knowing this': that the law is not made for a righteous man, but 
for the lawless and disobedient'; for the ungodly and for sinners'; 
for unholy and profane'; for murderers of fathers, and murderers 
of mothers'; for manslayers'; for whoremongers'; for them that 
defile themselves with mankind'; for man-stealers'; for liars'; for 
perjured persons'; and if there be any other thing that is contrary 
to sound doctrine. 

Time would fail us to recount the measures by which the way 
was prepared for the Revolution : the stamp-act ; its repeal, with 
the declaration of right to tax America ; the landing of troops in 
Boston, beneath the battery of fourteen vessels of war, lying broad- 
side to the town, with springs on their cables, their guns loaded, 
and matches smoking ; the repeated insults ; and, finally, the mas- 
sacre of the fifth of March, resulting from this military occupation, 
and the Boston Port Bill, by which the final catastrophe was 
hurried on. 

We celebrate the return of a day on which our separate national 
existence was declared : the day when the momentous experiment 
was commenced, by which the world and posterity and we our- 
selves were to be taught, how far a nation of men can be trusted 
with self-government ; how far life, liberty and property are safe, 
and the progress of social improvement secure, under the influence 
of laws made by those who are to obey the laws : the day when, 
for the first time in the world, a numerous people was ushered into 
the family of nations, organized on the principle of the political 
equality of all the citizens. 

Let the young man, who is to gain his living by his labor and 
skill, remember that he is a citizen of a free State ; that on him 
and his contemporaries it depends whether he will be happy and 
prosperous himself in his social condition, and whether a precious 
inheritance of social blessings shall descend, unimpaired, to those 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 207 

who come after him : that there is no important difference in the 
situation of individuals, but that which they themselves cause, or 
permit to exist : that if something of the inequality, in the goods of 
fortune, which is inseparable from human things, exists in this 
country, it ought to be viewed only as another incitement to that 
industry by which, nine times out of ten, wealth is acquired ; and 
still more to that cultivation of the mind, which, next to the moral 
character, makes the great difference between man and man. 

Give us the benevolence of the man, who can ply his faithful 
task in the face of every discouragement ; who can labor in scenes, 
where there is no brilliancy whatever to reward him ; whose kind- 
ness is that of sturdy and abiding principle, which can weather all 
the murmurs of ingratitude, and all the provocations of dishonesty ; 
who can find his way through poverty's putrid lanes, and de- 
pravity's most nauseous and disgusting receptacles ; who can 
maintain the uniform and placid temper within the secrecy of his 
own home, and amid the irksome annoyances of his own family ; 
who can endure hardships, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ ; 
whose humanity acts with as much vigor amid the reproach, and 
the calumny, and the contradictions of sinners, as when soothed 
and softened by the poetic accompaniment of weeping orphans, 
and interesting cottages ; and, above all, who labors to convert 
sinners, to subdue their resistance to the gospel, and to spiritualize 
them into a meetness for the inheritance of the saints. 

We know, or think we know, that God is ; and that all other 
existence is suspended upon his will ; and that, were it not for his 
upholding arm, the whole of nature would go into dissolution ; and 
that, while he sits in high authority over all worlds, there is not 
one individual member of his vast family, that is overlooked by 
him ; and, more particularly, that he looks with the eye of a wise 
and watchful judge, into every heart, and every conscience ; and 
that he claims a right and a property in the services of all his 
creatures ; and that he is more absolutely the owner and the mas- 
ter of them all, than is man of the machine that he hath made, and 
to whose touch all its movements are subordinate ; and that he is 
a God of august and inviolable sacredness, in whose presence evil 
cannot dwell, and between the sanctity of whose nature and sin, 
there is a wide and implacable enmity ; and that he does not sit in 
lofty and remote indifference to the characters of his children, but 
takes deep and perpetual and most vigilant concern in them all : 
loving their righteousness, hating their iniquity, treasuring their 
thoughts, and their purposes, and their doings in the book of his 
remembrance ; and that, with a view to the manifestation of them, 
on that day, when time shall be no more, and each of his account- 
able offspring shall have their condition awarded to them through 



208 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

eternity : when the mystery of God shall be finished, and the glory 
of his attributes shall be made to shine forth at the close and the 
consummation of all things. 

In rustic solitude 'tis sweet 

The earliest flowers of spring to greet v : 

The violet from its tomb': 
The strawberry, creeping at your feet': 

The sorrell's simple bloom. 

Their flame 
Kindled within his breast the love of fame, 
And politics and country'; the pure glow 
Of patriot ardor v ; and the consciousness 
That talents such as his would well bestow 
A lustre on the city. 

The spirit of that day 
Through the idle mesh of power shall break, 
Like billows o'er the Asian monarch's chain, 
Till men are filled with him, and feel how vain, 
Instead of the pure heart and innocent hands, 
Are all the proud and pompous modes to gain 
The smile of heaven : till a new age expands 
Its white and holy wings above the peaceful lands. 



Those ages have no memory, but they left 

A record in the desert : columns strown 

On the waste sands, and statues fallen and cleft, 

Heaped like a host in battle overthrown : 

Vast mines, where the mountain's ribs of stone 

Were hewn into a city : streets that spread 

In the dark earth, where never breath has blown 

Of heaven's sweet air, nor foot of man dares tread 

The long and perilous ways : the cities of the dead. 

I would trace 
His master-strokes, and draw from his design : 
I would express him simple, grave, sincere : 
In doctrine incorrupt ; in language plain, 
And plain in manner ; decent, solemn, chaste, 
And natural in gesture ; much impressed 
Himself, as conscious of his awful charge, 
And anxious mainly that the flock he feeds 
May feel it too ; affectionate in look, 
And tender in address, as well becomes 
A messenger of grace to guilty man. 






THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 209 

Oh, leave me, still, the rapid flight 

That makes the changing seasons gay : 

The grateful speed that brings the night : 

The swift and glad return of day : 

The months that touch, with added grace, 

This little prattler at my knee ; 

In whose arch eye and speaking face, 

New meaning every hour I see : 

The years, that o'er each sister land, 

Shall lift the country of my birth, 

And nurse her strength, till she shall stand 

The pride and pattern of the earth ; 

Till younger commonwealths, for aid, 

Shall cling about her ample robe ; 

And from her frown shall shrink afraid, 

The crowned oppressors of the globe. 

Note 1. Loose sentences, both perfect and imperfect, are employed as indirect interroga- 
tives without being punctuated as such '.e.g. 

If the means were in themselves bad, you would not say that 
the end justified them; or if the means were good, you would not 
say that they justified all the results which might flow from their 
use. — No. 

You [surely] know the history of this man's enterprises : how 
his doings and observations were among the veriest outcasts of 
humanity : how he descended into prison-houses, and there made 
himself familiar with all that could revolt or terrify in the exhibi- 
tion of our fallen nature : how for this purpose he made the tour 
of Europe. * 

Note 2. Compact sentences -with the first part, only, expressed on account of similarity of 
construction, are sometimes confounded with perfect and imperfect loose : e. g. 

You would not select the public firebrand'; you would not seek 
your seconds in the tavern, or the brothel'; you would not inquire 
out the man who was oppressed with debts, contracted by licen- 
tiousness, debauchery, every species of profligacy \ [Who, sir, I 
ask, were Caesar's seconds in his undertakings ?] 

It is easy to awaken generous sentiments in privacy': to despise 
death, when there is no danger': to glow with benevolence, when 
there is nothing to be given\ [While such ideas are formed, they 
are felt.] 

'Tis pitiful 
To court a grin, when you should woo a soul ; 
To break a jest, when pity should inspire 
Pathetic exhortation ; and to address 
The skittish fancy with facetious tales, 
When sent with God's commission to the heart. 
18* 



210 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

The first of these sentences, though apparently a perfect loose, is, as it has been already 
shown, {see Rule VIII. 4,) a double compact, with the first part, only, consisting of several 
members, expressed : the second is a single compact, with the first part expressed, with a 
continuation understood something like this: "But to awaken them in public, to despise 
death when facing it, to show benevolence when called upon to give, is more difficult" 
Indeed — but, are the correlative words. The third is also a single compact, having the second 
part understood ; and having for its correlative words, therefore — because, thus : " Therefore it 
ia pitiful, &c, because a violation of every principle of duty and benevolence." 

Miscellaneous Examples of Declarative Sentences. 

To an American visiting Europe, the long voyage he has to make 
is an excellent preparative. From the moment you lose sight of 
the land you have left, all is vacancy until you step on the oppo- 
site shore, and are launched at once into the bustle and novelties of 
another world.* 

We one day descried some shapeless object drifting at a dis- 
tance. At sea, every thing that breaks the monotony of the sur- 
rounding expanse, attracts attention. It proved to be the mast of 
a ship that must have been completely wrecked ; for there were 
the remains of handkerchiefs, by which some of the crew had fas- 
tened themselves to this spar, to prevent their being washed off by 
the waves. 

Such was the state of Eden, when the serpent entered its bowers. 
The prisoner in a more engaging form, winding himself into the' 
open and unpractised heart of the unfortunate Blennerhasset, found 
but little difficulty in changing the native character of that heart 
and the objects of its affections. By degrees, he infuses into it the 
poison of his own ambition : he breathes into it the fire of his own 
courage ; a daring and desperate thirst for glory ; an ardor panting 
for all the storm and bustle and hurricane of life. 

The succession and contrast of the seasons give scope to that 
care and foresight, diligence and industry, which are essential to 
the dignity and enjoyment of human beings, whose happiness is 
connected with the exertions of their faculties. With our present 
constitution and the state in which impressions on the senses enter 
so much into our pleasures and pains, and the vivacity of our sen- 
sation is affected by comparison, the uniformity and continuance 
of perpetual spring would greatly impair its pleasing effect on our 
feelings. 

Our life is compared to a falling leaf. When we are disposed 
to count on protracted years, to defer any serious thoughts of fu- 
turity, and to extend our plans through a long succession of sea- 
sons; the spectacle of the "fading, many-colored woods," and the 
naked trees, affords a salutary admonition of our frailty. It should 
teach us to fill the short year of life, or that portion of it which 

* Though sentences under this head are given in their connection, they are intended in all 
cases to be read and described separately and independently. 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 211 

may be allotted to us, with useful employments, and harmless 
pleasures ; to practice that industry, activity and order, which the 
course of the natural world is constantly preaching. 

Let not the passions blight the intellect in the spring of its ad- 
vancement, nor indolence nor vice canker the promise of the heart 
in blossom. Then shall the summer of life be adorned with moral 
beauty, the autumn yield a harvest of wisdom and virtue, and the 
winter of age be cheered with pleasing reflections on the past, and 
bright hopes of the future. 

Looking upon the declaration of independence as the one promi- 
nent event which is to represent the American system, I deem it 
right in itself and seasonable to assert, that, while all other political 
revolutions, reforms, and improvements have been in various ways 
of the nature of palliatives and alleviations of systems essentially 
and irremediably vicious, this alone is the great discovery in politi- 
cal science. 

Such has been the case with Mr. Roscoe. Born in a place ap- 
parently ungenial to the growth of literary talent ; in the very 
market-place of trade ; without fortune, family connections, or 
patronage ; self-prompted, self-sustained, and almost self-taught ; 
he has conquered every obstacle ; achieved his way to eminence ; 
and, having become one of the ornaments of the nation, has turned 
the whole force of his talents and influence to advance and embel- 
lish his native town. 

Their practice of the law was not in the narrow litigation of the 
courts, but in the great forum of contending empires : it was not 
nice legal fictions they were employed to balance, but sober reali- 
ties of indescribable weight ; the life and death of their country 
was the* all-important issue. 

The time is well adapted to the deed. It is now eight years 
since the corner-stone was laid, on the day that completed the half 
century from the battle. Let us this year urge the work to the 
close, with the completion of the half century since the termination 
of the war. If we celebrated the grand commencement of hostili- 
ties, in the foundation, let us bring forth the top-stone, in the happy 
commemoration of the return of peace. I believe, sir, as I have 
already said, that the work is in proper hands. I mean no fulsome 
compliment ; I speak what history avouches : that the mechanics, 
as a class, were prime agents, in all the measures of the Revo- 
lution. 

If there is. any cause, in which it is right and proper to employ 
the social principle, the promotion of temperance is that cause ; for 
intemperance, in its origin, is peculiarly a social vice. Although, 
in its progress, men may creep away, out of shame, to indulge the 
depraved appetite in secret ; yet no man, in a state of civilization, 



212 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

is born, I imagine, with a taste so unnatural that he seeks an in- 
toxicating liquor, in the outset, for his ordinary drink. 

The maxims of temperance are not new ; they are as old as 
Christianity : as old as any of the inculcations of personal and social 
duty. Every other instrument of moral censure had been tried, ir 
the case of intemperance, as in that of other prevailing errors, vices 
and crimes. The law had done something, the press had done 
something, the stated ministrations of religion had done something, 
but all together had done little ; and intemperance had reached a 
most alarming degree of prevalence. At length the principle of 
association was applied ; societies were formed ; meetings were 
held ; public addresses made ; information collected and commu- 
nicated ; pledges mutually given ; the minds of men excited and 
their hearts warmed, by comparison of opinions : by concert and 
sympathy ; and within the space of twenty years, of which not 
more than ten have been devoted to strenuous effort, a most signal 
and unexampled reform has been achieved. 

When public bodies are to be addressed on momentous occa- 
sions, when great interests are at stake, and strong passions excited, 
nothing is valuable in speech, farther than it is connected with high 
intellectual and moral endowments. Clearness, force and earnest- 
ness are the qualities which produce conviction. True eloquence 
indeed does not consist in speech ; it cannot be brought from far. 
Labor and learning may toil for it, but they toil for it in vain : words 
and phrases may be marshalled in every way, but they cannot 
compass it : it must exist in the man ; in the subject ; and in the 
occasion. Affected passion, intense expression, the pomp of decla- 
mation, — all may aspire after it ; they cannot reach it : incomes, 
if it come at all, like the outbreaking of a fountain from the earth 
or the bursting forth of volcanic fires, with spontaneous, original, 
native force. 

The hour of retribution is at length arrived. He who had no 
mercy upon others, is now reduced to a condition which may excite 
the pity of his most implacable enemy : he who has made so many 
miserable, is now condemned to drink, to the very dregs, the bitter 
cup of degradation and sorrow. 

I speak not now of the public employment of informers, with a 
promise of secrecy and extravagant reward ; I speak not of the fate 
of those horrid wretches who have been so often transferred from 
the table to the dock, and from the dock to the pillory ; I speak of 
what your own eyes have seen, day after day, during the course of 
this commission, from the box where you are now sitting. 

As it is not a vain and false, but an exalted and religious imagi- 
nation, which leads us to raise our thoughts from the orb which, 
amidst this universe of worlds, the Creator has given us to inhabit, 






THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 213 

and to send them, with something of the feeling which nature 
prompts and teaches to be proper among children of the same 
Eternal Parent, to the contemplation of the myriads of fellow- beings, 
with which his goodness has peopled infinite space ; so neither is it 
false or vain to consider ourselves as interested or connected with 
our whole race through all time. 

They solicit them in one manner, and they execute them in 
another. They set out with a great appearance of activity, hu- 
mility and moderation ; and they quickly fall into sloth, pride and 
avarice. 

Grateful for the indulgence with which they were favored, and 
thankful for the patience and politeness with which they were 
honored ; they should certainly be the last to condemn that, in 
which they themselves were the greatest transgressors. 

To carry on with effect an expensive war, and yet be frugal of 
the public money ; to oblige those to serve, whom it may be deli- 
cate to offend ; to conduct, at the same time, a complicated variety 
of operations ; to concert measures at home, answerable to the 
state of things abroad ; and to gain every valuable end, in spite of 
opposition from the envious and disaffected ; — this is more difficult 
than is generally thought. 

As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father ; and I 
lay down my life for the sheep. Other sheep I have, which are 
not of this fold : them also must I bring ; and they shall hear my 
voice ; and there shall be one fold and one shepherd. Therefore 
doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life that I might 
take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of 
myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it 
again. This commandment have I received of my Father. 

It is no uncommon circumstance in controversy, for the parties 
to engage in all the fury of disputation, without precisely knowing, 
themselves, the particulars about which they differ. Hence that 
fruitless parade of argument, and those opposite pretences to de- 
monstration, with which most debates, on every subject, have been 
infested. Would the contending parties first be sure of their own 
meaning, and then communicate their sense to others in plain terms 
and simplicity of heart, the face of controversy would soon be 
changed ; and real knowledge, instead of imaginary conquest, 
would be the noble reward of literary toil. 

If thou art a child, and hast ever added a sorrow to the soul or 
a furrow to the silvered brow of an affectionate parent ; if thou art 
a husband, and hast ever caused the fond bosom that ventured its 
whole happiness in thy arms, to doubt one moment of thy kindness 
or thy truth; if thou art a friend, and hast ever wronged in 
thought, or word or deed, the spirit that generously confided in thee : 



214 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 






if thou art a lover, and hast ever given one unmerited pang to that 
true heart that now lies cold and still beneath thy feet ; then be 
sure that every unkind look, every ungracious word, every un- 
gentle action, will come thronging back upon thy memory, and 
knocking dolefully at thy soul : then be sure that thou wilt lie 
down sorrowing and repenting on the grave, and utter the unheard 
groan, and pour the unavailing tear ; more deep, more bitter, be- 
cause unavailing. 

But the pious man is, like Scipio, never less alone than when alone: 
his solitude and retirement are not only tolerable, but commonly 
the most grateful part of his life : he can ever with much pleasure, 
and more advantage, converse with himself : digesting and mar- 
shalling his thoughts, his affections, his purposes, into good order : 
searching and discussing his heart : reflecting on his past ways : 
enforcing his former good resolutions, and framing new ones : in- 
quiring after edifying truths : stretching his meditations toward 
the best and the sublimest objects : raising his hopes, and warm- 
ing his affections towards spiritual and heavenly things : asking 
himself pertinent questions, and resolving incidental doubts con- 
cerning his practice : in fine, conversing with his best Friend in 
devotion : with admiration and love contemplating the divine per- 
fections displayed in the works of nature, of providence, of grace : 
praising God for his excellent benefits and mercies : confessing his 
defects and offences : deprecating wrath and imploring pardon, 
with grace and ability to amend : praying for the supply of all his 
wants. 

The prophecy will obtain its fulfilment, but not till the fulfilment 
of the verses wiiich go before it : not till the influence of the gos- 
pel has found its way to the human bosom, and plucked out of it 
the elementary principles of war : not till the law of love shall 
spread its melting and all-subduing efficacy among the children of 
one common nature : not till ambition be dethroned from its mas- 
tery over the affections of the inner man : not till the guilty splen- 
dors of war shall cease to captivate its admirers, and spread the 
blaze of a deceitful heroism over the wholesale butchery of the 
species : not till 'national pride be humbled, and man shall learn 
that if it be individually the duty of each of us in honor to 
prefer one another, then let these individuals combine as they may, 
and form societies as numerous and extensive as they may, and 
each of these be swelled out to the dimensions of an empire, still, 
that mutual condescension and forbearance remain the unalterable 
Christian duties of these empires to each other : not till man learn 
to revere his brother as man, whatever portion of the globe he oc- 
cupies, and all the jealousies and preferences of a contracted pat- 
riotism be given to the wind : not till war shall cease to be prose- 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 215 

cuted as a trade, and the charm of all that interest which is linked 
with its continuance, shall cease to beguile men in the peaceful 
walks of merchandise, into a barbarous longing after war : not, in 
one word, till pride, and jealousy, and interest, and all that is op- 
posite to the law of God, and the charity of the gospel, shall be for- 
ever eradicated from the character of those who possess an effectual 
control over the public and political movements of the species: 
not till all this be brought about ; (and there is not another agent 
in the whole compass of nature that can bring it about but the gos- 
pel of Christ, carried home by the all-subduing power of the Spirit 
to the consciences of men :) — then,* and not till then, will peace 
come to take up its perennial abode with us, and its blessed advent 
on earth be hailed by one shout of joyful acclamation throughout 
all its families : then, and not till then, will the sacred principle of 
good-will to men circulate as free as the air of heaven among all 
countries ; and the sun, looking out from the firmament, will be- 
hold one fine aspect of harmony throughout the wide extent of a 
regenerated world. 

We have been discoursing of infancy, childhood, boyhood, and 
youth ; of pleasures lying upon the unfolding intellect plenteously 
as morning dew-drops of knowledge inhaled insensibly like fra- 
grance ; of dispositions stealing into the spirit like music from un- 
known quarters ; of images uncalled for, and rising up like exha- 
lations ; of hopes plucked, like beautiful wildflowers from the 
ruined tombs that border the highways of antiquity, to make a 
garland for a living forehead : in a word, we have been treating 
of nature as a teacher of truth through joy and through gladness, 
and as a creatress of the faculties by a process of smoothness and 
delight. We have made no mention of fear, shame, sorrow, nor 
of ungovernable and vexing thoughts; because, although these 
have been, and have done mighty service, they are overlooked in 
that stage of life, when youth is passing into manhood : overlooked, 
or forgotten. 

Unnatural must be that son, and hard his heart, who, after hav- 
ing received from parental love and care, his life, protection, and 
sustenance, the nurture of the body, and the culture of the soul, 
could coldly turn away from the hearth of his father and mother, 
when old age was gathering around them, and their powers were 
in decay, and their path beset with danger and infirmity, and leave 



* The following is manifestly understood before this word: "but when it shall be brought 
about.' 1 Strictly speaking, "brought about" was intended by the writer to be followed by 
" will peace, &c. ;" but the parenthesis presented itself, and subsequently, under the influ- 
ence of his emotions, he forgot the previous structure, and broke in with, "then, and not till 
then." These noble negligences are characteristic of all great minds. They will be found 
alike in Demosthenes, Cicero, Paul, Webster, and Chalmers, the author of the sentence under 
consideration. 



216 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

them unnoticed and unhonored, to descend the painful declivity of 
life into a sepulchre of sorrow. 

The effect of this devotion of elegant minds to rural occupations, 
has been wonderful on the face of the country. 

A ball of wood could not be thus softened by blows. 
I cut it open. 
He slept. 

Once more unto the breach, my friends, once more, 
Or close the wall up with our English dead. 

Since plays are but a kind of public feasts, 
Where tickets only make the welcome guests ; 
Methinks, instead of grace, we should prepare 
Your taste in prologue, with your bill of fare. 

Were you but half so humble to confess, 
As you are wise to know, your happiness ; 
Our author would not grieve to see you sit 
Ruling, with such unquestioned power, his wit. 

Swans sing before they die : 'Twere no bad thing, 
Should certain persons die before they sing. 

I had a thing to say, but let it go. 

Would he were fatter, but I fear him not. 

Protected by that hand, whose law 
The threatening storms obey, 
Intrepid virtue smiles secure, 
As in the blaze of day. 

You are meek and humble mouthed ; 
You sign your place and calling, in full seeming 
With meekness and humility ; but your heart 
Is crammed with arrogance, spleen and pride. 

Were I crowned the most imperial monarch, 
Thereof most worthy ; were I the fairest youth, 
That ever made eye swerve ; had force and knowledge 
More than was ever man's ; I would not prize them 
Without her love. 

I were, indeed, indifferent to fame, 
Grudging two lines to immortalize my name. 

While malice, Pope, denies thy page 

Its own celestial fire ; 
While critics and while bards in rage, 
. Admiring, won't admire ; 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 217 

While wayward pens thy works assail, 

And envious tongues decry ; 
These times, though many a friend bewail, 

These times bewail not I. 

Beauty is but a vain, a fleeting good : 
A shining gloss that fadeth suddenly : 
A flower that dies when almost in the bud : 
A brittle glass that breaketh presently : 
A fleeting good, a glass, a gloss, a flower, 
Lost, faded, broken, dead, within the hour. 

As goods, when lost, we know are seldom found, 

As fading gloss no rubbing can excite, 

As flowers when dead are trampled on the ground, 

As broken glass no cement can unite, 

So beauty, blemished once, is ever lost, 

In spite of physic, painting, pains and cost. 

Where yon old trees bend o'er a place of graves, 

And solemn shade a chapel's sad remains ; 

Where yon scathed poplar through the window waves, 

And, twining round, the hoary arch sustains ; 

There oft, at dawn, as one forgot behind, 

Who longs to follow, yet unknowing where, 

Some hoary shepherd, o'er his staff reclined, 

Pores on the graves, and sighs a broken prayer. 

To wake the soul by tender strokes of art ; 
To raise the genius, and to mend the heart ; 
To make mankind in conscious virtue bold, 
Live o'er the scene, and be what they behold ; — 
For this the tragic muse first trod the stage : 
Commanding tears to stream through every age. 

There various news I heard of love and strife : 
Of peace and war, health, sickness, death and life : 
Of loss and gain : of famine, and of store : 
Of storms at sea, and travels on the shore : 
Of prodigies and portents in the air : 
Of fires and plagues, and stars with blazing hair: 
Of turns of fortune ; changes in the state ; 
The falls of favorites ; projects of the great : 
Of old mismanagements ; taxations new : 
All neither wholly false, nor wholly true. 
19 



218 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED 

By the fair and brave 
Who, blushing, unite, 
Like the sun and wave 
When they meet at night ; 
By the tear that shows 
When passion is nigh, 
As the rain-drop flows 
From the heat of the sky ; 
By the first love beat 
Of the youthful heart ; 
By the bliss to meet, 
And the pain to part ; 
By all that thou hast 
To mortals given, 
Which could it but last, 
This earth were heaven ; 
We call thee hither, entrancing power. 

The low of herds 
Blends with the rustling of the heavy grain 
Over the dark-brown furrows. 

Did sweeter sounds adorn my flowing tongue, 
Than ever man pronounced, or angel sung ; 
Had I all knowledge, human and divine, 
That thought can reach, or science can define ; 
And had I power to give that knowledge birth, 
In all the speeches of the babbling earth ; 
Did Shadrach's zeal my glowing breast inspire 
To weary tortures, and rejoice in fire ; 
Or had I faith like that which Israel saw, 
When Moses gave them miracles and law; 
Yet, gracious Charity, indulgent guest, 
Were not thy power exerted in my breast, 
That scorn of life would be but wild despair: 
A cymbal's sound were better than my voice : 
My faith were form : my eloquence were noise. 

There is not in the wide world a valley so sweet, 
As that vale in whose bosom the bright waters meet : 
Oh ! the last rays of feeling and life must depart, 
Ere the bloom of that valley shall fade from my heart. 
Yet it was not that nature had shed o'er the scene 
Her purest of crystal and brightest of green ; 
'Twas not the soft magic of streamlet and hill : 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 219 

Oh ! no ;* it was something more exquisite still : 

'Twas, that friends, the beloved of my bosom, were near, 

Who made each scene of enchantment more dear ; 

And who felt how the blessed charms of nature improve, 

When we see them reflected from looks that we love. 

Thou art not noble, 
For all the accommodations that thou bearest, 
Are nursed by baseness : thou art by no means valiant, 
For thou dost fear the soft and tender fork 
Of a poor worm. The best of rest is sleep ; 
And that thou oft provokest, yet grossly fearest 
Thy death, which is no more. Thou art not thyself, 
For thou existest on many a thousand grains, 
That issue out of dust : happy thou art not, 
For what thou hast not, still thou strivest to get ; 
And what thou hast, forgettest : thou art not certain, 
For thy complexion shifts to strange effects, 
After the moon. If thou art rich, thou'rt poor; 
For, like an ass whose back with ingots bows, 
Thou bearest thy heavy riches but a journey, 
And death unloads thee. Friend thou hast none, 
For thine own bowels, which do call thee sire, 
The mere effusion of thy proper loins, 
Do curse the gout, serpigo, and the rheum, 
For ending thee no sooner : thou hast nor youth nor age, 
But, as it were, an after-dinner sleep, 
Dreaming on both ; for all thy blessed youth 
Becomes as aged, and doth beg the alms 
Of palsied eld ; and when thou art old and rich, 
Thou hast neither heat, affection, limb, nor beauty, 
To make thy riches pleasant. 

Love and awe 
Mingled in the regard of Helon's eye, 
As he beheld the stranger. He was not 
In costly raiment clad, nor on his brow 
The symbol of a princely lineage wore ; 
No followers at his back, nor in his hand 
Buckler, or sword, or spear ; yet in his mien. 
Command sat throned serene ; and, if he smiled, 
A kingly condescension graced his lips, 
The lion would have crouched to, in his lair. 



* Observe that 710 is the equivalent of the line preceding. 



220 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

While the trees are leafless, 
While the fields are bare, 
Buttercups and daisies 
Spring up here and there. 

Ere the snow-drop peepeth, 

Ere the crocus bold, 

Ere the early primrose 

Opes its paly gold, 

Somewhere on a sunny bank, 

Buttercups are bright : 

Somewhere 'mong the frozen grass 

Peeps the daisy white : 
Little hardy flowers, 
Like to children poor 
Playing in their sturdy health 
By their mother's door : 
Purple with the north wind, 
Yet alert and bold : 
Fearing not and caring not, 
Though they be a-cold. 

The Nautilus ever loves to glide 
Upon the crest of the radiant tide. 

Tree nor shrub 
Dares that drear atmosphere ; no polar pine 
Uprears a veteran front; yet there ye stand, 
Leaning your cheeks against the thick-ribbed ice, 
And looking up with brilliant eyes to Him 
Who bids you bloom unblanched amid the waste 
Of Desolation. Man, who, panting, toils 
* O'er slippery steeps, or, trembling, treads the verge 
Of yawning gulfs, o'er which the headlong plunge 
Is to eternity, looks shuddering up, 
And marks ye in your placid loveliness, 
Fearless, yet frail, and, clasping his chill hands, 
Blesses your pencilled beauty. 'Mid the pomp 
Of mountain summits rushing on the sky, 
And chaining the rapt soul in breathless awe 
He bows to bind you drooping to his breast, 
Inhales your spirit from the frost- winged gale, 
And freer dreams of heaven. 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 221 



CLASS II. COMPOUND INTERROGATIVE SENTENCES. 

Having under the preceding head of compound declarative sentences, adduced very nu- 
merous examples of close, compact and loose, I presume that, by this time, the student is suf- 
ficiently acquainted with their peculiarities, to recognise them, whether tney appear as de- 
claratives, interrogatives or exclamations. I shall not, therefore, quote a greater number of 
examples than may be necessaiy to enable the student to obtain a clear conception of the 
rule of their delivery, and to apply it with facility. 

I. DEFINITE INTERROGATIVES. 

1 . Close. 
Rule X. The close definite interrogative is delivered either with 
the upward slide from the beginning to the end, (see Plate, Fig. 3,) 
or with the upward slide at the beginning, passing into a level 
tone of voice in the middle, and terminating with the upward slide 
at the end : {see Plate, Fig. 15 :) when it has a series, i. e. two more 
members of similar construction ; or being still more complex, 
when either of these members contains a series ; they are succes- 
sively delivered in the same manner as the first, but in a slightly 
more elevated tone of voice. (See Plate, Fig. 12 : see also Ch. III. 
Modulation, Slides.) 

Of the two methods of delivery stated in the first half of the jrule, the first should be adopted 
in every case in which it is practicable ; and it is practicable more frequently than is generally 
supposed: when, however, the sentence is a very Jong one, and consequently the space to be 
traversed by the slide is too great for the compass of the voice, the second must be, necessa- 
rily, preferred. 



Examples. 

Is not this he that sat and begged ? 

Do the rulers know indeed, that this is the very Christ ? 

Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother 
we know ? 

Could not this man, who opened the eyes of the blind, have 
caused that even this man should not have died ? 

Have they not in this place every motive, assistance and encour- 
agement to engage them in a virtuous and moral life, and to ani- 
mate them in the attainment of useful learning ? 

Is it not remarkable that the same temper of weather, which 
raises this general warmth in animals, should cover the trees with 
leaves, and the fields with grass, for their security and conceal- 
ment, and produce such infinite swarms of insects for the support 
and sustenance of their respective broods ? 

Does atheism or universal skepticism dilate the heart with the 
liberal and generous sentiments, and that love of human kind which 
would render a man revered and blessed, as the patron of depressed 
merit, the friend of the widow and the orphan, the refuge and sup- 
port of the poor and unhappy ? 

19* 



222 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

Is it possible in the present state of the public sentiment of the 
world, with the present rapid diffusion of knowledge, with the 
present reduction of antiquated error to the test of reason, that 
such a quarter of the world will be permitted to derive nothing 
but barbarism from intercourse with the countries which stand at 
the head of civilization ? 

Are the miseries of man, and is the fatal necessity of death in 
contemplation ? 

Has he not himself, have not all the martyrs after him poured 
forth their blood in the conflict ? 

Hast thou not known, hast thou not heard that the everlasting 
God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth fainteth not, 
neither is weary ? 

Does not the farmer cultivating his lands, does not the mariner 
navigating his vessel on the ocean, do not professional men in their 
various pursuits, contribute as reallj- as the statesman in his cabi- 
net to the prosperity of the country ? 

Are all the feelings of ancestry, posterity and fellow-citizenship ; 
all the charm, veneration and love bound up in the name of coun- 
try ; the delight, the enthusiasm, with which we seek out, after 
the lapse of generations and ages, the traces of our fathers' bravery 
and wisdom ; — are these all a legal fiction ? 

Is the gift of articulate speech, which enables man to impart his 
condition to man, the organized sense which enables him to com- 
prehend what is imparted, is that sympathy which subjects our 
opinions and feelings, and through them our conduct to the influ- 
ence of others, and their conduct to our influence, is that chain of 
cause and effect which makes our characters receive impressions 
from the generations before us, and puts it in our power by a good 
or bad precedent to distil a poison or a balm into the characters of 
posterity, — are these, indeed, all by-laws of a corporation ? 

Will you believe that the pure system of Christian faith, which 
appeared eighteen hundred years ago, in one of the obscurest 
regions of the Roman empire, at the moment of the highest cul- 
tivation and of the lowest moral degeneracy ; which superseded 
at once all the curious fabrics of pagan philosophy ; which spread 
almost instantaneously through the civilized world in opposition to 
the prejudices, the pride, and the persecution of the times ; which 
has already had the most beneficial influence on society, and been 
the source of almost all the melioration of the human character ; 
and which is now the chief support of the harmony, the domestic 
happiness, the morals, and the intellectual improvements of the 
best part of the world ; will you believe, I say, that this system 
originated in the unaided reflections of twelve Jewish fishermen on 
the sea of Galilee, with the son of a carpenter at their head ? 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 223 

Does prodigal autumn to our age deny 

The plenty that once swelled beneath his sober eye ? 

Will he quench the ray 
Infused by his own forming smile at first, 
And leave a work so far all blighted and accurst? 

Will a man play tricks, will he indulge 
A silly, fond conceit of his fair form 
And just proportion, fashionable mien, 
And pretty face, in presence of his God ? 

Can we want obedience then 
To him, or possibly his love desert, 
Who formed us from the dust and placed us here, 
Full to the utmost measure of what bliss 
Human desires can seek or apprehend ? 
Canst thou with impious obloquy condemn 
The just decree of God, pronounced and sworn, 
That to his only Son, by right endued 
With regal sceptre, every soul in heaven 
Shall bend the knee, and in that honor due 
Confess him rightful king? 

Will then the merciful One, who stamped our race 
With his own image, and who gave them sway 
O'er earth, and the glad dwellers on her face, 
Now that our flourishing nations far away 
Are spread, where'er the moist earth drinks the day, 
Forget the ancient care that taught and nursed 
His latest offspring ? 

2. Compact. 

Single compacts only are employed as interrogatives : at least, I have not met with any double 
compact interrogatives in the course of my reading. I have found them interwoven with 
other interrogative sentences, but in this form, they are referred to the head of " Mixed sen- 
tences." 

The single compact sentence in most of its varieties, {in all, I believe, except those formed on 
the comparatives, more, better, than, Sec.,) is wholly interrogative only when the parts appear 
in the reversed order, thus : " Is it then a time to remove foundations when the earth itself is 
shaken ?" Restore the natural order of the parts of this sentence, and it ceases to be wholly 
interrogative : the question being limited to the second pail, thus : " When the earth itself is 
shaken, is it then a time to remove foundations ?" In this form the sentence is a variety of the 
semi-interrogative ; and consequently it does not belong here. 

Under the head of declarative compacts, I have taken pains to show that the correlative 
words are sometimes both expressed, sometimes only one, and sometimes neither. I shall 
take it for granted that this is now understood ; and therefore shall adduce examples under the 
rule indiscriminately. 

Rule XI. The compact definite interrogative, when its parts 
consist of single members, is delivered precisely like the close ; (see 
preceding Rule ;) but when they contain two or more members, the 
series in the first part is delivered like the series in the close : and 



224 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

the series in the second part, like the series of an imperfect loose. 
(See Loose.) 

Examples. 

Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the 
truth ? 

Had you rather Csesar were living, and die all slaves, than that 
Caesar were dead, to live all freemen ? 

Would you renounce being useful to the present generation, be- 
cause you feel the envenomed shaft of envy ? 

Shall we therefore consider these statutes, I have enumerated, as 
harmless, because they are too wicked for execution ? 

Do ye so well understand the matter, are your ideas of it so com- 
plete, that it is not susceptible of more than this or that ? 

Is it likely you will succeed in this wish, while you neglect to 
afford them an example of what you wish them to practice ? 

Is this then a time to forget the protection of heaven, when the 
hearts of men are failing them for fear, and for looking after those 
things which are coming on the earth ? 

Could he possibly have committed this crime, which, all will 
admit, is at variance with the character hitherto imputed to him, and 
with the tenor of his life, if he had been sane ? 

Are not the just, the brave, and the good, necessarily exposed 
to the disagreeable emotions of dislike and aversion, when they 
respectively meet with instances of fraud, of cowardice or of 
villany ? 

Do you not imagine that Themistocles also, and those that fell at 
Marathon and at Platea, and the very tombs of our ancestors, will 
raise a groan, if this man, who, avowedly siding with barbarians, 
opposed the Greeks, shall be crowned ? 

Could the children of Israel have been imposed on to receive an 
Ark, and a Tabernacle, then forged, and a complete set of service 
and liturgy, as descending from Moses by the direction of God, 
unless that ark and that service had come to them from their an- 
cestors, as authorized by God '? 

Is it then possible that we can be indifferent, that we can delay 
preparation for another state, that we can hesitate to embrace the 
proffers of grace, when death is an event which may occur at any 
moment : when it may occur now while I am speaking from the 
sacred desk? 

Then do we not recommend ourselves, when employed either in 
qualifying ourselves for doing good or in doing it : when we have 
the common advantage for our constant pursuit : when we seek for 
pleasure in making ourselves of use, and feel happiness in the de- 
gree in which we communicate it? 



J 
THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 225 

Should we not think it very unreasonable, if he should, in this 
case, persist in discrediting the testimony even of a single man, 
whose veracity he had no reason to suspect ; and much more, if he 
should persist in opposition to the concurrent and continually in- 
creasing testimony of numbers ? 

Shall we deny the occurrence of a given event in a place or times 
remote, because we did not witness its occurrence : because it was 
extraordinary : because we cannot account for it on ordinary prin- 
ciples : because they who testified to its occurrence, did not happen 
to be an Aristotle, a Plato, or a Socrates ? 

Can the obscurity in which providence hath been pleased to wrap 
up some of its designs, raise doubts about the justice of the Creator, 
if the principles of the gospel be admitted: if we be persuaded that 
the tyrant, whose prosperity astonished us, fulfil the counsel of 
God : if ecclesiastical history assures us, that Herods and Pilates 
themselves contributed to the establishment of that Christianity 
which they meant to destroy : especially, if we admit a state of 
future reward and punishment ? 

In their far blue arch, 
Sparkle the crowd of stars less brightly 
When day is done ? 

Will he seek to dazzle me with tropes 
As with the diamond on his lily hand, 
And play his brilliant parts before my eyes, 
When I am hungry for the bread of life ? 

So jest with heaven, 
Make such inconstant children of ourselves, 
As now again to snatch our palm from palm, 
Unswear faith sworn, and on the marriage-bed 
Of smiling peace to march a bloody host, 
And make a riot on the gentle brow 
Of true sincerity ? 

Note. The following examples, if they had a declarative instead of an interrogative con- 
struction, would be single compacts of the third form ; and of that variety of the third form 
which, besides having the correlative words understood, has its two parts connected by and or 
and yet, or and then, expressed. If, as interrogatives, they had the regular construction, they 
would be classed with semi-interrogatives. The regular form of the first example below, would 
be the following : " If you are a scholar, shall the land of the Muses ask your help in vain ?" 
This is semi-interrogative ; as may be seen by referring to the appropriate head. With the 
first part, however, as well as the second, constructed interrogatively, to call it a semi-interrog- 
ative, would be to misname it. On this account, I have thought it best to introduce it, 
together with others of a more complex character, in this place. The delivery does not vary 
materially from the rule ; though a delivery approaching that of the perfect loose sentence is 
often heard, and is not inadmissible. Still, I prefer that which makes the second part begin 
after the pause with a continuation of the tone with which the first ends, and from thence 
advance up the slide. 



226 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

Examples. 

Are you a scholar, and shall the land of the Muses ask your 
help in vain ? 

Are you a Christian, and do you cheerfully contribute your prop- 
erty to Christianize the heathen world ? 

Did I grow up side by side with your father, and shall his son 
pass me like a stranger in these old streets of Padua ? 

With the eye of the enthusiast do you often gaze at the triumphs 
of the arts, and will you do nothing to rescue their choicest relics 
from worse than vandal barbarism ? 

Are you a mother, rejoicing in all the charities of domestic life ; 
are you a daughter, rich and safe in conscious innocence and 
parental love ; and shall thousands more among the purest and 
loveliest of your sex, glut the shambles of Smyrna, and be doomed 
to a capacity inconceivably worse than death ? 

Can we minister to the intellectual and spiritual wants of Syria, 
of Greece, of Burmah, of Ceylon, and of the remotest isles of the 
Pacific ; have we enough and to spare for these remote nations and 
tribes with whom we have no nearer kindred than that Adam is 
our common parent and Christ our common Saviour ; and shall we 
shut our hands on the call for the soul's food, which is addressed 
to us by these our brethren, our schoolmates, whose fathers stood 
side by side with ours, in the great crisis of the country's fortune ? 
Could thirst of vengeance and desire of fame 
Excite the female breast with martial flame ; 
And shall not love's diviner power inspire 
More hardy virtue and more generous fire ? 

3. Loose. 

Loose interrogative sentences, both definite and indefinite, are liable to be mistaken for 
close, in consequence of having the interrogation point placed by printers as often at the end 
of the parts, as at the end of the sentence alone. (See Plate Fig. 12, a. b. c.) The examples 
which follow are pointed in both ways ; but the student will observe that when the interro- 
gation is placed after each of the parts, it is not followed by a capital letter, as too often and 
incorrectly in books. This practice is uniform throughout this work. 

Rule XII. The parts relatively considered, should be delivered 
successively with the upward slide ; each part beginning at a slightly 
more elevated tone of voice : (see Plate, Fig. 12 :) separately and 
independently, according as they are simple or compound, close or 
compact, in conformity with the rules hereinbefore given for their 
delivery. 

1. Perfect Loose. 

Examples. 
Is the tale now told : is the contrast now complete : are our des- 
tinies all fulfilled : are we declining or even stationary ? 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 227 

Could he expect the concurrence of every individual in that 
house ; and was he so weak or wicked, as to contrive plans of gov- 
ernment of such a texture, that the intervention of circumstances, 
obvious and unavoidable, would occasion their total failure ? 

Was it to be wondered at, that a people, so circumstanced, 
should search for the cause and source of all their calamities ; or 
was it to be wondered at that they should find them in the arbitrary 
interpretations of their Constitution, and in the prodigal and cor- 
rupt administration of their revenues ? 

Is this the genuine fruit of the pious care of our ancestors, for 
the security and propagation of religion and good manners to the 
latest posterity ? is this at last the reward of their munificence ? or 
does this conduct correspond with the views, or with the just 
expectations and demands of your friends and your country ? 

Had not the Shepherd made them to lie down in green pastures ; 
had he not led them beside the still waters ; restored he not their 
souls ; did he not lead them for his name's sake in the paths of 
righteousness ; and was he not with them still, though at length 
they walked the valley where death had cast his never -departing 
shadow ? 

Ought not a title-deed like this to become the acquisition of the 
nation ? ought it not to be laid up in the archives of the people ? 
ought not the price at which it is bought to be a provision for the 
ease and comfort of the old age of him who drew it ? ought not 
he who at the age of thirty, declared the independence of his 
country, at the age of eighty to be received by his country in the 
enjoyment of his own ? 

Had not a paltry unconstitutional tax, neither in amount nor in 
principal to be named with the taxes of France, just put the con- 
tinent of America in a flame ; and was it possible that the young 
officers of the French army should come back to their native land 
from the war of political emancipation waged on this continent, 
and sit down contented, under the old abuses at home ? 

Was it the winter's beating upon the houseless heads of women 
and children, was it hard labor and spare meals, was it disease, 
was it the tomahawk, was it the deep malady of a blighted hope, 
a ruined enterprise and a broken heart aching in its last moments 
at the recollection of the loved and left beyond the sea, was it 
some, or all of these united, that hurried this forsaken company 
to their melancholy fate ; and is it possible that neither of these 
causes, that not all combined, were able to blast this bud of hope ? 

Is the spot less precious now that eight more seasons have 
wept their dews over the dear and sacred blood, that has re- 
mained for eight more years uncommemorated beneath the sod ? 
are the valor, the self-devotion of the heroes of that day, of 



228 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 






Warren, and Prescott, and Putnam, and Stark, and their gallant 
associates less deserving of celebration ? is this mighty and event- 
ful scene in the opening drama of the Revolution less worthy of 
celebration, now that eight years more, in the prosperous enjoy- 
ment of our liberties, contrasted as they have been with the disas- 
trous struggles in other countries, have given us fresh cause for 
gratitude to our fathers ? 

Do they (atheism or universal skepticism) tend to inspire that 
magnanimity and elevation of mind, that superiority of selfish 
gratifications, that contempt of danger and of death, when the 
cause of virtue, of liberty, or their country require it, which dis- 
tinguish characters of patriots and heroes ; is their influence more 
favorable on the humbler and gentler virtues of private and do- 
mestic life ; do they soften the heart, and render it more delicately 
sensible of the thousand nameless duties and endearments of a 
husband, a father, a friend ; do they produce that habitual serenity 
and cheerfulness of temper, that gayety of heart, which makes a 
man beloved as a companion ; or do they dilate the heart with the 
liberal and generous sentiments, and that love of human kind, 
which would render him revered and blessed as the patron of de- 
pressed merit, the friend of the widowed and the orphan, the 
refuge and support of the poor and the unhappy ? 

Would not a strain of greater loftiness be heard to ascend from 
those regions where the all-working God had left the traces of his 
immensity, than from the tame and the humbler scenery of an 
ordinary landscape ; would you not look for a gladder acclamation 
from the fertile field, than from an arid waste where no character 
of grandeur made up for the barrenness that was around you ; 
would not the goodly tree, compassed about with the glories of its 
summer foliage, lift up an anthem of louder gratitude, than the 
lowly shrub that grew beneath it ; would not the flower, from 
whose leaves every hue of loveliness was reflected, send forth a 
sweeter rapture than the russet- weed, which never drew the eye 
of any admiring passenger ; and would it not be there that you 
looked for the deepest tones of devotion, where you saw the tower- 
ing eminences of nature, or the garniture of her more rich and 
beauteous adornments ? 

Can the deep statesman, skilled in great design, 
Protect but for a day precarious breath ? 
Or the tuned follower of the sacred nine, 
Soothe with his melody, insatiate death ? 

Is the sword well suited to the band ; 

Does 'broidered coat agree with sable gown ; 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 229 

Can Mechlin laces shade a churchman's hand ; 
Or learning's votaries ape the beaux of town ? 

Has Nature in her calm majestic march 
Faltered with age at last ; does the bright sun 
Grow dim in heaven ; or, in their far blue arch, 
Sparkle the crowd of stars, when day is done, 
Less brightly ? 

Has silence pressed her seal upon his lips ? 
Does adamantine faith invest his heart ? 
"Will he not bend beneath a tyrant's frown ? 
Will he not melt before ambition's fire ? 
Will he not soften in a friend's embrace ? 
Or flow dissolving in a woman's tears ? 

Is he not thine own, 
Thyself in miniature, thy flesh, thy bone ; 
And hop'st thou not 

That since thy strength must with thy years elope, 
And then wilt need some comfort to assuage 
Health's last farewell, a staff of thine old age, 
That then, in recompense of all thy cares, 
■ Thy child shall show respect to thy gray hairs, 
Befriend thee, of all other friends bereft, 
And give thy life its only cordial left ? 

2. Imperfect Loose. 

Examples. 

May we doubt how guilty that attachment to pleasure is, which 
lays waste our understanding : which entails on us ignorance or 
error : which renders us even more useless than the beings whom 
instinct alone directs ? 

Are we so humble, so low, so debased, that we dare not express 
our sympathy for suffering Greece : that we dare not articulate our 
detestation of the brutal excesses of which she has been the bleed- 
ing victim ? 

Do not the scriptures clearly show that they who persecute are 
generally in the wrong, and they who suffer persecution in the 
right : that the majority has always been on the side of falsehood, 
and the minority only on the side of truth ? 

Is any thing more evident than that serious applications cannot 
be long sustained ; that we must sink under their weight ; that they 
soon stupefy or distract us ; and that they cannot be carried on but 
by allowing us intervals of relaxation and mirth ? 

20 



230 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

Do we never meet with charity which melts at suffering : with 
the honesty which disdains, and is probably superior to falsehood : 
with the active beneficence which gives to others its time and its 
labor : with the modesty which shrinks from notice, and gives all 
its sweetness to retirement : with the gentleness which breathes 
peace to all, and throws a beautiful lustre over the walks of domestic 
society ? 

Are we so mean, so base, so despicable that we may not attempt 
to express our horror, utter our indignation, at the most brutal and 
atrocious war that ever stained earth or shocked high Heaven : at 
the ferocious deeds of a savage and infuriated soldiery, stimulated 
and urged b} T the clergy of a fanatical and inimicable religion, and 
rioting in all the excesses of blood and butchery, at the mere 
details of which the heart sickens and recoils ? 

Might not sensibility shed forth its tears, friendship perform its 
services, liberality impart of'its treasures, patriotism earn the grati- 
tude of its country, honor maintain itself entire and untainted, and 
all the softenings of what is amiable, and all the glories of what is 
chivalrous and manly, gather into one bright effulgence of moral 
accomplishment on the person of him, who never, for a single day 
of his life, subordinates one habit, or one affection, to the will of 
the Almighty ; who is just as careless and unconcerned about God, 
as if the native tendencies of his constitution had compounded him 
into a monster of deformity ; and who just as effectually realizes 
this attribute of rebellion against his Maker, as the most loathsome 
and profligate of the species that walks in the counsel of his own 
heart and after the light of his own eyes ? 

Have you never read in your own character, or in the observed 
character of others, that the claims of the Divinity may be entirely 
forgotten by the very man to whom society around him yield, and 
rightly yield, the homage of an unsullied and honorable reputation ; 
that this man may have all his foundations in the world ; that every 
security on which he rests, and every enjoyment upon which his 
heart is set, lieth on this side of death; that a sense of the coming 
day in which God is to enter into judgment with him, is, to every 
purpose of practical ascendency, as good as expunged altogether 
from his bosom ; that he is far in desire, and far in enjoyment, and 
far in habitual contemplation, away from that God, who is not far 
from any one of us ; that his extending credit, and his brightening 
prosperity, and his magnificent retreat from business, with all the 
splendor of its accommodations, are the futurities at which he ter- 
minates ; and that he goes not in thought beyond them to that 
eternity, which, in the flight of a few years, will absorb all, and 
annihilate all ? 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 231 

Hast thou incurred 
His anger, who can waste thee with a word ; 
Who poises and proportions sea and land, 
Weighing them in the hollow of his hand ; 
And in whose awful sight all nations seem 
As grasshoppers, as dust, a drop, a dream ? 

Can I forget what charms did once adorn 

My garden, stored with peas, and mint, and thyme, 

And rose, and lily, for the Sabbath morn : 

The Sabbath bells, and their delightful chime : 

The gambols and wild freaks at shearing-time : 

My hen's rich nest through long grass scarce espied : 

The cowslip-gathering in June's dewy prime : 

The swans, that when I sought the water-side, 

From far to meet me came, spreading their snowy pride? 

Hast thou not learned, what thou art often told 
A truth still sacred, and believed of old, 
That no success attends on spears and swords 
Unblest, and that the battle is the Lord's : 
That courage is his creature, and dismay, 
The frost that at his bidding speeds away, 
Ghastly in feature, and his stammering tongue 
With doleful humor, and sad presage hung, 
To quell the valor of the stoutest heart, 
And teach the combatant the woman's part : 
That he bids thousands fly when none pursue, 
Saves as he will by many or by few, 
And claims forever, as his royal right, 
The event and sure decision of the fight ? 

But is it fit, or can it bear the shock 
Of rational discussion, that a man, 
Compounded and made up like other men 
Of elements tumultuous, in whom lust 
And folly in as ample measure meet, 
As in the bosoms of the slaves he rules, 
Should be a despot absolute, and boast 
Himself the only freeman of his land : 
Should, when he pleases, and on whom he will, 
Wage war, with any or with no pretence 
Of provocation given, or wrong sustained, 
And force the beggarly last doit by means, 
That his own humor dictates, from the clutch 



232 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

Of povert}' - , that thus he may procure 
His thousands, weary of penurious life, 
A splendid opportunity to die ? 

Miscellaneous Examples of Definite Interrogatives. 

Can gray hairs make folly venerable ? and is not their period to 
be reserved for retirement and meditation ? 

Does he suppose me less capable of gratitude for his patriotism, 
or sympathy for his sufferings, than if his eyes had first opened 
upon the light in Massachusetts, instead of South Carolina ? 

Has the gentleman discovered in former controversies with the 
gentleman from Missouri that he is overmatched by that senator ; 
and does he hope for an easy victory over a more feeble adversary ? 

Is it then, for a sovereign state to fold her arms and stand still 
in submissive apathy, when the loud clamors of the people, whom 
Providence has committed to her charge, are ascending to heaven 
for justice ? 

Can all the illusions of ambiiion realized, can all the wealth of 
universal commerce, can all the achievements of successful heroism, 
or all the establishments of this world's wisdom, secure to empire 
the permanency of its possessions ? 

Have any alarms been occasioned by the emancipation of our 
Catholic brethren ; has the bigoted malignity of any individual been 
crushed ; or has the stability of the government, or that of the 
country been weakened ; or is one million of subjects stronger than 
four millions ? 

Would it have been quite amiable in me, sir, to interrupt the 
excellent good feeling ? must I not have been absolutely malicious, 
if I could have thrust myself forward to destroy sensations thus 
pleasing ? was it not much better and kindlier, both to sleep upon 
them myself, and to allow others, also, the pleasure of sleeping 
upon them ? 

Has not Philip, contrary to all treaties, insulted you in Thrace : 
does he not at this instant, straiten and invade your confederates, 
whom you have solemnly sworn to protect : is he not an implacable 
enemy, a faithless ally, the usurper of provinces to which he has 
no title nor pretence, a stranger, a barbarian, a tyrant ? 

Do you think, as honest men, anxious for the public tranquillity, 
conscious that there are wounds not yet completely cicatrized, that 
you ought to speak this language, at this time, to men who are too 
much disposed to think that in this very emancipation they have 
been saved from their own parliament by the humanity of their 
sovereign ? 

Can a man, who by divine meditation, is admitted, as it were, 
into the conversation of this ineffable, incomprehensible Majesty, 




THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 233 



think days, or years, or ages, too long for the continuance of so 
rayishing an honor ; shall the trifling amusements, the palling 
pleasures, the silly business of the world, roll away our hours too 
swiftly from us ; and shall the space of time seem sluggish to 
a mind exercised in studies so high, so important, and so glo- 
rious ? 

Must I wound his ear with the news of your revolt : must he 
hear from me, that neither the soldiers raised by himself, nor the 
veterans who fought under him, are willing to own his authority : 
must he be told that neither dismissions from the service, nor 
money lavishly granted, can appease the fury of ungrateful men : 
must I inform, him that here centurions are murdered ; that, in this 
camp, the tribunes are driven from their posts ; that here the am- 
bassadors of Rome are detained as prisoners ; that the intrench- 
ments present a scene of slaughter ; that rivers are discolored with 
our blood ; and that a Roman general leads a precarious life, at 
the mercy of men inflamed with an epidemic madness ? 

Do not you, and did not they, feel, that this life cannot be man's 
only abiding-place ? that this spirit cannot pass, upon the hasty 
and uncertain waves of time, to an eternal nothing ? that the rest- 
less, irrepressible, and unsatisfied leapings of the heart and the 
affections, after that which is higher and beyond all that surrounds 
us, demand that we should credit something which belongs not to 
the passing hour ? that all the economy of nature, the beauty of 
the earth, the brilliancy of the stars, the glory of the lights of the 
day and the night, the forms of human strength and loveliness, 
cannot be taken from us and pass forever from our sight and our 
enjoyment ? that there must be a continued, a prolonged existence, 
where the eye shall see, the ear hear, beauty fade not, the affec- 
tions of the heart be not blasted, and the glorious panoply of na- 
ture be spread out forever ? 

Is the world to gaze in admiration on this fine spectacle of virtue ; 
and are we to be told that the Being, who gave such faculties to 
one of his children, and provides the theatre for their exercise, that 
the Being, who called this moral scene into existence, and gave it 
all its beauties, that he is to be forgotten, and neglected as of no 
consequence ? 

Are you Christians ; and, by upholding duelists, will you deluge 
the land with blood, and fill it with widows and orphans ? 

Will you bestow your suffrage, when you know that by with- 
holding it, you may arrest this deadly evil ? 



And have not prison gloom, 
And taunting foes, and threatened doom 
Obscured thy courage yet ? 
20* 



234 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

Hear ye the sounds that the winds on their pinions 

Exultingly roll from the shore to the sea, 

With a voice that resounds through her boundless dominions ? 

Has earth a clod 
Its maker meant not should be trod 
By man, the image of his God, 

Erect and free, 
Unscourged by superstition's rod, 

To bow the knee ? 

Is not the lovely woman 
I met in the adjacent hall, who, with 
An air and port and eye which would have better 
Beseemed this palace in its brightest days, 
Though in a garb adapted to its present 
Abandonment, returned my salutation, — 
Is not the same your spouse ? 

Art thou that traitor angel, art thou he 

Who first broke peace in heaven, and faith, till then 

Unbroken, and in proud rebellious arras 

Drew after him the third part of heaven's sons, 

Conjured against the Highest ; for which both thou 

And they, outcast from God, are here condemned 

To waste eternal days in wo and pain ? 

Is it a time to wrangle, when the props 
And pillars of our planet seem to fail, 
And Nature with a dim and sickly eye 
To wait the close of all ? 

Canst thou, the tear just trembling on thy lids, 
And while the dreadful risk foreseen forbids, 
Free too, and under no constraining force, 
Unless the sway of custom warp thy course, 
Lay such a stake upon the losing side 
Merely to gratify so blind a guide ? 

Shall yon exulting peak, 
Whose glittering top is like a distant star, 
Lie low beneath the boiling of the deep, 
No more to have the morning sun break forth, 
And scatter back the mists in floating folds 
From its tremendous brow : no more to have 
Day's broad orb drop behind its head at even ; 
Leaving it with a crown of many hues : 
No more to be the beacon of the world 




THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 235 

For angels to alight on,- as the spot 
Nearest the stars ? 

[Oh earth !] dost thou too sorrow for the past 

Like man thy offspring ; do I hear thee mourn 

Thy childhood's unreturning hours, thy springs 

Gone with their genial airs and melodies, 

The gentle generations of thy flowers, 

And thy majestic groves of olden time, 

Perished with all their dwellers ; dost thou wail 

For that fair age of which the poets tell, 

Ere the rude winds grew keen with frost, or fire 

Fell with the rains, or spouted from the hills, 

To blast thy greenness, while the virgin night 

Was guiltless and salubrious as the day ; 

Or, haply, dost thou grieve for those that die : 

For living things that trod awhile thy face, 

The loved of thee and heaven, — and now they sleep, 

Mixed with the shapeless dust on which thy herds 

Trample and graze ? 

2. INDEFINITE INTERROGATIVE SENTENCES. 

1. Close. 

Rule XIII. This interrogative should be delivered either with 
an uninterrupted downward slide, {see Plate, Fig. 4,) or with the 
downward slide at the beginning, passing into a level tone of voice 
through the middle, and terminating with the downward slide at 
the end : {see Plate, Fig. 16 :) when it has two or more members 
similarly constructed at the beginning, or either of these members 
has sub-members of similar construction, these members are suc- 
cessively delivered in the same manner, but in a slightly lower 
tone of voice. {See Chap. III. Modulation, Slides.) 

Of the two methods spoken of in the beginning of the rule, the first is to be preferred if 
practicable ; but when the sentence is too Ion? for a continuous downward slide, the second 
must of necessity be adopted : even then the level should rather be comparative than abso- 
lute, and the voice perceptibly fall : just perceptibly, and no more. 

Examples. 

What citizen of our republic is not grateful in view of the con- 
trast which our history presents £ 

Who ever sought honor, glory, praise or fame of any kind with 
the same ardor that we fly those most cruel of afflictions, ignominy, 
contumely, and scorn? 

How can it enter into the thoughts of man, that the soul, which 



236 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

is capable of such immense perfections, and of receiving new im- 
provements to all eternity, shall fall away into nothing almost as 
soon as it is created ? 

Where is the man who has not his wrong tendencies to lament ? 

Whence is it that veteran troops face an enemy with almost as 
little concern as they perform their exercise ? 

Which of those faculties or affections, which heaven can be sup- 
posed to gratify, have you cultivated and improved ? 

When was it that Rome attracted most strongly the admiration 
of mankind, and impressed the deepest sentiment of fear on the 
hearts of her enemies ? 

Who can say for how many centuries, safe in their undiscovered 
fastnesses, they had decked their war-chiefs with the feathers of 
the eagle's tail and listened to the counsels of their beloved old 
men? 

Why did they not, in the next breath, by way of crowning the 
climax of their vanity, bid the magnificent fire-ball to descend from 
its exalted and appropriate region, and perform its splendid tour 
along the surface of the earth ? 

What rank or condition of youth is there, that has not daily and 
hourly opportunities of laying in supplies of knowledge and virtue, 
that will in every station of life be equally serviceable and orna- 
mental to themselves and beneficial to mankind ? 

What time can suffice for the contemplation and worship of that 
glorious, immortal and eternal Being, among the works of whose 
stupendous creation those numberless luminaries which we may 
here behold spangling all the sky, may possibly appear but as a 
few atoms, opposed to the whole earth which we inhabit ? 

What eye has been permitted to see, what ear to hear, what 
heart to conceive, those things which God has in preparation for 
them that love him ? 

Who that has a memory to look back over the past, who that 
has a mind to comprehend all the present, who that has an imagi- 
nation to embody the dim visions of the future, will despair ? 

Who does not feel, what reflecting American does not ac- 
knowledge, the incalculable advantages derived to this land out of 
the deep foundations of civil, intellectual and moral truth, from 
which we have drawn in England ? 

Who that has a heart to love his family, his state, the nation, 
the living or the unborn world, and who that has a soul that 
ascends in thought to the throne of God, the mansions of angels, 
and the habitations of the just made perfect, will despair of the 
literature of his country ? 

Who can tell how much of his good or ill success in life, how 
much of the favor or disregard with which he himself has been 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 237 

treated, may have depended upon that skill or deficiency in gram- 
mar, of which he must have afforded certain and constant evi- 
dence ? 

But what to them the sculptor's art, 
His funeral columns, wreaths and urns ? 

And what is faith, love, virtue, unessayed, 
Alone, without exterior help sustained ? 
Why stand we gazing on the sparkling brine 
With wonder, smit by its transparency, 
And all enraptured with its purity ? 
Where shall the lover rest, 

Whom the fates sever 
From his true maiden's breast, 
Parted forever V 

And who that walks, where men of ancient days 
Have wrought with godlike arm the deeds of praise, 
Feels not the spirit of the place control, 
Exalt and agitate his laboring soul ? 

Why 
Should we, in the world's riper years, neglect 
God's ancient sanctuaries, and adore 
Only among the crowd, and under roofs 
That our frail hands have raised ? 
How comes it that the wondrous essence, 
Which gave such vigor to those strong-nerved limbs, 
Has leapt of its enclosure, and compelled 
This noble workmanship of nature thus 
To sink into a cold, inactive clod ? 
Why wouldst thou, but for some felonious end, 
In thy dark lantern thus close up the stars 
That Nature hung in heaven, and filled their lamps 
With everlasting oil, to give due light 
To the misled and lonely traveller ? 

Who that there 
Had seen those listening warrior-men, 
With their swords grasped, their eyes of flame 
Turned on their chief, could doubt the shame, 
The indignant shame with which they thrill 
To hear those shouts and yet stand still ? 
And who was she, in virgin prime, 

And May of womanhood, 
Whose roses here, unplucked by time, 
In shadowy tints have stood, 



238 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

While many a winter's withering blast 
Hath o'er the dark cold chamber past 
In which her once resplendent form 
Slumbered to dust beneath the storm ? 

2. Compact. 

Rule XIV. When both parts of a compact indefinite inter- 
rogative consist of a single member each, they are together de- 
livered precisely like the close ; [see preceding Hide ;) but when 
either of them contains two or more members, the series in the 
first, is delivered like the series of the close, and the series in the 
second, like the series of a loose. (See Loose Sentence below.) 

Examples. 

Who would ever have mentioned it, had not Ccelius impeached 
a certain person ? 

What can carry less the appearance of a design to fight, than a 
man entangled with a cloak, shut up in a chariot, and almost 
fettered by a wife ? 

What could have been his motive for pursuing the conduct he 
did on that occasion, when his obligations to act differently were 
numerous and solemn ? 

What is so calculated, under the blessing of divine grace, to 
impress them with the importance of prayer, as the being called 
at stated intervals to take part in our devout supplications to 
God? 

Why should we suspend our resistance, why should we submit 
to an authority like this, if we have the right and superior force 
on our side ? 

What are we to look for, when you shall be no longer hackneyed 
in the ways of men ; when interest shall have completed the 
obduration of your heart; and when experience shall have im- 
proved you in all the arts of guile ? 

How can we but despair of ever witnessing on earth a pure and 
a holy generation, when even parents will utter their polluting 
levities in the hearing of their own children ; and vice and humor 
and gayety, are all indiscriminately blended into our conversation ; 
and a loud laugh from the initiated and the uninitiated in profli- 
gacy, is ever ready to flatter and to regale the man who can thus 
prostitute his powers of entertainment ? 

Why recur to any presumption, for the purpose of bringing the 
question to a settlement, when, upon this very topic, we are fa- 
vored with an authoritative message from God : when an actual 
embassy has come from him, and that on the express errand of 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 239 

reconciliation : when the records of this embassy have been col- 
lected into a volume within the reach of all who will stretch forth 
their hand to it : when the obvious expedient of consulting the 
record is before us ? 

Who would not cherish dreams so sweet, 
Though grief and pain should come to-morrow ? 

What should hinder me to sell my skin, 
Dear as I could, if once my heart were in ? 

Why, 
Even for a moment, has our verse deplored 
Their wrongs, since they fulfilled their destiny ? 

Who could guess, 
If evermore should meet those mutual eyes, 
Since upon night so sweet, such awful morn should rise ? 

What better can we do, than to the place 
Repairing where he judged us, prostrate fall 
Before him reverent, and there confess 
Humbly our faults, and pardon beg with tears 
Watering the ground, and with our sighs 
Frequenting, sent from hearts contrite, in sign 
Of sorrow unfeigned and humiliation ? 

So senseless who could be 
As long and perseveringly to mourn 
For any object of his love, removed 
From this unstable world, if he could fix 
A satisfying view upon that state 
Of pure, imperishable blessedness, 
Which reason promises, and Holy Writ 
Ensures to all believers ? 

What profits all that earth, 
Or heaven's blue vault, is suffered to put forth 
Of impulse or allurement, for the soul 
To quit the beaten track of life, and soar 
Far as she finds a yielding element 
In past or future, far as she can go 
Through time or space ; if neither in the one 
Nor in the other region, nor in aught 
That fancy dreaming o'er the map of things, 
Hath placed beyond these penetrable bounds, 
Words of assurance can be heard : if nowhere 
A habitation, for consummate good, 



240 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

Nor for progressive virtue, by the search 

Can be attained ; a better sanctuary 

From doubt and sorrow, than the senseless grave ? 

Note. Occasionally in sustained prose and poetry, but more frequently in dialogue and 
conversation, nothing of the first part of the compact is expressed, except the interrogative 
pronoun: e.g. 

What, if he should not come ? 

What, if instead of the few and trifling evils we now endure, we 
should experience disaster upon disaster until we lay prostrate in a 
scene of universal desolation ? 

What, when we fled amain, pursued and struck 
With heaven's afflicting thunder, and besought 
The deep to shelter us ? 

What, if the breath that kindled those grim fires, 
Awaked, should blow them into sevenfold rage, 
And plunge us in the flames ? 

What, though through all creation there were heard 
No happy voices ? 

3. Loose. 

Rule XV. The parts of a loose sentence considered relatively, 
should be successively delivered with the downward slide, begin- 
ning at a slightly lower tone of voice; {see Plate, Fig. 13;) but 
separately and independently considered, according as they are 
simple or compound, close or compact, in conformity to rules al- 
ready given. 

1. Perfect Loose. 

Examples. 

Of what use is salt, if it hath lost its savor ; or of what use is 
the sword-blade, if it doth not cut ? 

But what interest could he have in abusing this man's character 
to me ; or why should I question his truth, when he assured me, 
that this man had never performed an act of charity in his life ? 

Why was the French revolution so bloody and destructive : why 
was our revolution of 1641 comparatively mild : why was our revo- 
lution of 16S8 milder still : why was the American revolution, con- 
sidered as an internal movement, the mildest of all ? 

What fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness ? and 
what communion hath light with darkness ? and what concord 
hath Christ with Belial ? or what part hath he that believeth with 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 241 

an infidel ? and what agreement hath the temple of God with 
idols ? 

Who then will sustain the expense, if not the Christian world ; 
and what portion of the Christian world rather than the American 
churches ; and what district of these churches, rather than that in. 
which we are assembled ; and what individuals rather than our- 
selves ? 

Where is the Yery possibility of entering into these thoughts 
and resolutions ? what delight is there in expecting misery without 
end ? what variety in finding one's self encompassed with impene- 
trable darkness ? or what consolation in despairing forever of a com- 
forter ? 

How shall I attempt to follow them through the succession of 
great events which a rare and kind Providence crowded into their 
lives : how shall I attempt to count all the links of that bright 
chain, which binds the perilous hour of their first efforts for free- 
dom, with the rich enjoyment of its consummation : how shall I 
attempt to enumerate the posts they filled and the trusts they dis- 
charged at home and abroad ? 

Who is it, that will best possess and most effectually exercise 
these more than magic powers ? who is it, that will most effectually 
stem the torrent of human passions, and calm the raging waves of 
human vice and folly ? who is it, that, with the voice of a Joshua, 
shall control the course of nature herself in the perverted heart, 
and arrest the luminaries of wisdom and virtue in their rapid revo- 
lutions round this little world of man ? 

But how shall we pursue this conspiracy into its other ramifica- 
tions : how shall we be able to neutralize that insinuating poison 
which distils from the lips of grave and respectable citizens : how 
shall we be able to dissipate that gloss which is thrown by the 
smile of elders and superiors over the sins of forbidden indulgence : 
how can we disarm the bewitching sophistry which lies in all these 
evident tokens of complacency on the part of advanced and reputa- 
ble men : how is it possible to trace the progress of the sore evil 
throughout all the business and intercourse of society : how can we 
stem the influence of evil communications, when the friend and the 
patron, and the man who had cheered and signalized us by his 
polite invitations, turns his own family-table into a nursery of licen- 
tiousness : how can we but despair of ever witnessing on earth a 
pure and a holy generation, when even parents will utter their pol- 
luting levities in the hearing of their own children ; and vice and 
humor and gayety, are all indiscriminately blended into one conversa- 
tion ; and a broad laugh from the initiated and the uninitiated in 
profligacy, is ever ready to flatter and regale the man who can 
thus prostitute his powers of entertainment V 

21 



242 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

Who iii such a night will dare 

To tempt the wilderness ; 
And who 'raid thunder peals can hear 

Our signal of distress ? 

Why is the crowd so great to-day ; 
And why do the people shout " huzza ;" 
And why is yonder felon given 
Alone to feed the birds of heaven ? 

And where shall Israel lave her bleeding feet ; 
And when shall Zion's son^s again seem sweet ; 
And Judah's melody once more rejoice 
The hearts that leaped before its heavenly voice ? 

Yet why should I mingle in fashion's full herd ? 
Why crouch to her leaders, or cringe to her rules? 
Why bend to the proud, or applaud the absurd ? 
Why search for delight in the friendship of fools ? 

Where is that standard which Pelagio bore, 
When Cava's traitor-sire first called the band 
That dyed thy mountain-streams with Gothic gore : 
Where are those bloody banners which of yore 
Waved o'er thy sons victorious to the gale, 
And drove at last the spoilers to their shore ? 

What can be worse 
Than to dwell here, driven out from bliss, condemned 
In this abhorred deep to utter wo ; 
Where pain of unextinguishable fire 
Must exercise us without hope of end : 
The vassals of his anger, when the scourge 
Inexorable, and the torturing hour 
Call us to penance ? 

Who but rather turns 
To heaven's broad fire his unconstrained view, 
Than to the glimmering of a waxen flame : 
Who that, from Alpine heights, his laboring eye 
Shoots round the wide horizon, to survey 
Nilus or Ganges rolling his bright wave 
Through mountains, plains, through empires black with shade, 
And continents of sand, will turn his gaze 
To mark the windings of a scanty rill 
That murmurs at his feet ? 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 243 

2. Imperfect Loose. 
Examples. 

When saw we thee a hungered and fed thee ; or thirsty and 
gave thee drink V 

By whom is this profusion praised, but by wretches who consider 
him as subservient to their purposes ; sirens that entice him to 
shipwreck ; and cyclops that are gaping to devour him V 

What weightier recommendation to our assent can any doctrine 
have than that, as it tends to improve us in virtue, so the more 
virtuous we are, the more firmly we assent to it ; or, the better 
judges we are of truth, the fuller assurance we have of its truth ? 

To whom do we owe it, that in this favored land the gospel of 
the grace of God has best displayed its power to bless humanity, 
by uniting the anticipations of a better world with the highest in- 
terests and pursuits of this : by carrying its merciful influence into 
the very business and bosoms of men : by making the ignorant 
wise, and the miserable happy : by breaking the fetters of the 
slave, and teaching the babe and suckling those simple and sub- 
lime truths, which give to life its dignity and virtue, and fill im- 
mortality with hope V 

To whom but to the Father of light, in whom there is no dark- 
ness at all, can we be indebted, that now, persons of the slenderest 
i capacities may view those elevated and beneficial truths in the 
I strongest point of light, which the finest spirits of the Gentile 
| world could not before fully ascertain : that our meanest mechanics, 
I with a moderate share of application, may have juster and fuller 
| notions of God's attributes, of eternal happiness, of every duty 
I respecting their Maker, mankind and themselves, than the most 
■ distinguished scholars among the heathen could attain to, after a 
1 life laid out in painful researches ? 

i To whom do we owe it, that the pure and powerful light of the 
\ gospel is now shed abroad over these countries, and rapidly gain- 
ing upon the darkness of the western world ; that the importance 
^|of religion to the temporal welfare and to the permanence of wise 
institutions, is here beginning to be felt in its just measure ; that 
the influence of a divine revelation is not here, as in almost every 
other section of Christendom, wrested to purposes of worldly am- 
bition ; that the holy Bible is not sealed from the eyes of those 
for whom it was intended ; and that the best charities and noblest 
powers of the soul are not degraded by the terrors of a dark and 
artful superstition ? 

What could tend more to perpetuate the memory of an event, 
than to deliver a whole people by public, glorious miracles, from 



244 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

intolerable slavery ; to publish a very extraordinary system of 
laws immediately from heaven ; to put this law in writing together 
with the covenant for obeying it ; to make the tenure of the estates 
depend on the oiiginal division of the land, to men who saw the 
miracles, and first took possession, and on the proximity of relation 
by descent to them ; to appoint a return of lands every fiftieth 
year, which should give occasion to canvass those descents; to 
order a Sabbath every seventh year for the land, the loss of which 
should be supplied by the preceding year's increase ; and to select 
a whole tribe, consisting of many thousands, to be the guardians, 
and, in some degree, the judges and executors of this law ? 

How shall I attempt to enumerate the posts thej' filled and the 
trusts they discharged at home and abroad, both in the councils of 
their native states and of the confederation, both before and after 
the adoption of the federal constitution ; the codes of law, and the 
systems of government they aided in organizing ; the foreign em- 
bassies they sustained ; the alliances with foreign states they con- 
tracted when America was weak ; the loans and subsidies they 
procured from foreign powers, when America was poor ; the 
treaties of peace and commerce, which they negotiated ; their par- 
ticipation in the federal government ; (Mr. Adams as the first 
Vice-President, Mr. Jefferson as the first Secretary of State ;) then- 
mutual possession of the confidence of the only man, to whom his 
country accorded a higher place ; and their successive administra- 
tions in chief of the interests of this great Republic ? 

How acquire 
The inward principle that gives effect 
To outward argument : the passive will, 
Meek to submit : the active energy, 
Strong and unbounded to embrace, and firm 
To keep and cherish ? 

Why should we thus, with an untoward mind, 

And in the weakness of humanity, 

From natural wisdom turn our hearts away ; 

To natural comfort shut our eyes and ears ; 

And, feeding on disquiet, thus disturb 

The calm of nature with our restless thoughts ? 

Who shall be named, in the resplendent line 

Of sages, martyrs, confessors, the man 

Whom the best might of conscience, truth and hope, 

For one day's little compass, has preserved 

From painful and discreditable shocks 

Of contradiction : from some vague desire 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 245 

Culpably cherished, or corrupt relapse 
To some unsanctioned fear ? 

Why in age 
Do we revert so fondly to the walks 
Of childhood, but that there the soul discerns 
The dear memorial footsteps, unimpaired, 
Of her own native vigor : thence can hear 
Reverberations, and a choral song 
Commingling with the incense that ascends, 
Undaunted, toward the imperishable heavens, 
From her own lonely altar ? 

How, think you, would they tolerate this scheme 

Of fine propensities, that tends, if urged 

Far as it might be urged, to sow afresh 

The weeds of Roman fantasy, in vain 

Uprooted ; to reconsecrate our wells 

To good Saint Fillan, and to fair Saint Anne ; 

And, from long banishment, recall Saint Giles 

To watch again with tutelary care 

O'er stately Edinborough, throned on crags ? 

Miscellaneous Examples of Indefinite Interrogates. 

What are we to do, if the government and the whole community 
is of the same description S, 

What safety have any of us in our persons, what security for 
our rights, if the law shall be set aside ? 

By what means is tyranny, by what means are the excesses of 
arbitrary government most likely to be produced ? 

Where, then, were these guardians of the constitution, these 
vigilant sentinels of our rights and liberties, when this law was 
passed V 

On what ground, then, dare you speak lightly of the law, or 
move that, in a criminal trial, judges should advance one step be- 
yond what it permits them to go ? 

Where, then, is the justification of the attempt to produce a war 
of commercial regulations with Great Britain : passing over greater 
objections to the policy observed towards us by other nations ? 

In what school did the worthies of our land, the Washingtons, 
Henrys, Hancocks, Franklins, Rutledges of America, learn those 
principles of civil liberty, which were so nobly asserted by their 
wisdom and valor? 

How is it that tyranny has thus triumphed : that the hopes with 
which we greeted the French Revolution, have been crushed : that 

21* 



246 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

a usurper plucked up the last roots of the tree of liberty, and 
planted despotism in its place ? 

By what title do you, Naso, sit in that chair, and preside in this 
judgment : by what right, Attius, do you accuse, or I defend : 
whence all the solemnity and pomp of judges, and clerks, and 
officers, of which this house is full ? 

Why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but 
considerest not the beam in thine own eye ; or how wilt thou say to 
thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye, and behold, 
a beam is in thine own eye ? * 

Why should not divine faithfulness, supposing the truth of this 
absurd reasoning, transcend our poor understandings as much as 
divine goodness and justice ; and why may not God, consistently 
with this attribute, crush every hope which his word has raised ? 

What are we to think of those gentlemen, who, not only with 
proper and decent, but with laudable motives, so long, so perse- 
veringly, so pertinaciously opposed that voice of the people, w T hich 
had repeatedly, and for many years declared itself against them, 
through the organ of their representatives ? 

What place would be drearer than the future mansions of Christ, 
to one who should want sympathy with their inhabitants : w r ho 
could not understand their language : who w r ould feel himself a 
foreigner there : who would be taught, by the joys which he could 
not partake, his own loneliness and desolation V 

Now what must we expect, when Christians of all capacities and 
dispositions, the ignorant, prejudiced and self-conceited, imagine it 
their duty to prescribe opinions to Christendom, and to open or shut 
the door of the church according to the decision which their neigh- 
bors may form on some of the most perplexing points of theology i 

What, then, must be my feelings, what ought to be the feelings 
of a man cherishing such sentiments, when he sees an act contem- 
plated, which lays ruin at the root of all these hopes : when he sees 
a principle of action about to be usurped, before the operation of 
which, the bands of this constitution are no more than flax before 
the fire, or stubble before the whirlwind S 

Where w r ere, the ten thousand brisk boys of Shaftesbury, the 
members of ignoramus juries, the wearers of Polish medals, when 
the time of retribution came : when laws were strained, and juries 
packed, to destroy the leaders of the Whigs : when charters were 
invaded : when Jeffries and Kirke w r ere making Somersetshire, what 
Lauderdale and Graham had made Scotland V 

Why has every State acknowledged the contrary; why were 
deputies from all the States sent to the Convention; why have 
complaints of national and individual distresses been echoed and 
re-echoed throughout the continent ; why has our general govern- 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 247 

ment been so shamefully disgraced, and our constitution violated ; 
wherefore have our laws been made to authorize a change; and 
wherefore are we jiow assembled here ? 

Why should I mention the impressment of our seamen : depre- 
dation on every branch of our commerce ; including the direct ex- 
port trade, and made under laws which professedly undertake to 
regulate our trade with other nations : negotiation resorted to, time 
after time, till it is become hopeless : the restrictive system per- 
sisted in to avoid war, and in the vain expectation of returning 
justice ? 

What member of this house can say, with certainty, that he has, 
on all occasions, construed the constitution correctly ; and who 
among us would be satisfied to stake all his hopes and prospects on 
the issue of an investigation, which, disregarding all respect for the 
purity of the motive, should seek only to discover an inadvertent 
error, resulting from a defect of judgment in the attainment of ob- 
jects identified with the best interests of the nation ? 

What mystic spell is that which so blinds us to the suffering of 
our brethren, which deafens to our ear the voice of bleeding hu- 
manity, when it is aggravated by the shriek of dying thousands : 
which makes the very magnitude of the slaughter throw a softening 
disguise over its cruelties and its horrors : which causes us to eye 
with indifference the field that is crowded with the most revolting 
abominations, and arrests that sigh, which each individual would 
singly have drawn from us, by the report of the many who have 
fallen and breathed their last in agony along with him V 

From what source does the gentleman derive the principle that a 
right, inherent in the nature of man, which he inhales with his first 
breath, which grows with his growth and strengthens with his 
strength, which has the fiat of God for its sanction, and is incorpo- 
rated in the code of all the nations of the earth, becomes extinct 
with regard to those who, from motives of policy or humanity, may 
forbear to exercise it for any number of years : that a common law 
is thereby entailed on the American people to the latest genera- 
tions, by which they are required to bend beneath the tomahawk 
and scalping-knife of the savage, and submit to every cruelty and 
enormity without the privilege of retaliating on the enemy the 
wrongs and injuries we have suffered by his wanton transgressions 
of the rules of civilized warfare ? 

Who would be doomed to gaze upon 
A sky without a cloud or sun ? 

Why fly to folly, why to phrensy fly 
For rescue from the blessings we possess ? 



248 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

Where, where for shelter shall the guilty fly, 
When consternation turns the good man pale ? 
Why in this thorny wilderness so long, 
Since there's no promised land's ambrosial bower V 
' Wherefore dost thou urge the name of hands, 
To bid iEneas tell the tale twice o'er 
How Troy was burnt, and he made miserable ? 
Wherefore rejoice : what conquest brings he home : 
What tributaries follow him to Rome, 
To grace in captive bonds his chariot-wheels ? 
What hero like the man who stands himself : 
Who dares to meet his naked heart alone : 
Who hears intrepid the full charge it brings ; 
Resolved to silence future murmurs there V 

Who 
Shall shake these solid mountains, this firm earth 
And bid those clouds and waters take a shape 
Distinct from that which we and all our sires 
Have seen them wear on their eternal way ? 

What need we any spur but our own cause 
To prick us to redress ; what other bond, 
Than secret Romans that have\ spoke the word, 
And will not palter ; and what other oath, 
Than honesty to honesty engaged 
That this shall be, or we will fall for it ? 

Who proclaims to me 
That there were crimes made venial by the occasion ; 
That passion was our^nature ; that the goods 
Of Heaven waited on the goods of fortune : 
Who showed me his humanity secured 
By his nerves only : who deprived me of 
All power to vindicate myself and race 
In open day ? 

Why did Wolsey, near the steps of fate, 

On weak foundations raise the enormous weight ? 

Why but to sink beneath misfortune's blow 

With louder ruins to the gulfs below ? 

What gave great Villiers to the assassin's knife, 

And fixed disease on Harley's closing life ; 

What murdered Wentworth ; and what exiled Hyde, 

By kings protected and to kings allied ? 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 249 



3. INDIRECT INTERROGATIVE SENTENCES. 

Rule XVI. The indirect interrogative, if of a close or compact 
construction, is delivered with the upper emphatic sweep to the em- 
phatic word and the lower from it : if of a perfect or imperfect 
loose construction, each part is delivered in the same manner. (See 
Plate, Fig. 14 : a. b. See also Ok. III. Mod. Slides.) 

In a series of indirect, the last, and sometimes all but the first, are delivered like a declara- 
tive : ending with partial and perfect close. (See ibid, c.) 

1 . Examples of the first kind. 

He went to Europe after you saw him on that occasion f 
He admitted the validity of the deed, when you produced it f 
Bos. Patience once more, whiles our compact is urged. 

You say, if I bring in your Rosalind 

You will bestow her on Orlando here $ [To the Duke. ~\ 

Duke S. That would I, had I kingdoms to give with her. 
Ros. And you say you will have her, when I bring her f [To 

Orlando .] 
Orl. That would I, were I of all kingdoms, king. 
Ros. You say you'll marry me, if I be willing f [To Phebe.~\ 
Phe. That would I, should I die the hour after. 
Ros. But if you do refuse to marry me 

You'll give yourself to this most faithful shepherd here f 
Phe. So is the bargain. 

Ros. You say, that you'll have Phebe, if she will f [To Silvius.~\ 
Sil. Though to have her and death were both one thing. 

Hard state of things, that one may believe one's fears; but can- 
not rely upon one's hopes f 

2. Examples of the second kind. 

[And there came a leper and worshipped him : saying,] Lord, if 
thou wilt, thou canst make me clean f [And Jesus put forth his 
hand and touched him : saying, I will : be thou clean. *] 

[And the younger said unto his father,] Father, give me the por- 
tion of goods that falleth to me f [And he divided unto them his 
living.*] 

3. Examples of the third kind. 

[So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, 
son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these ? He saith unto 
him, Yea, Lord :] thou knowest that I love thee f [He saith unto 

* To read the parts of these sentences, not included in brackets, as many do, with the per- 
fect close, is to give them an air of impertinence, or impudence : an air entirely remote from 
the humble assurance and supplication which they are designed to express. 



250 v THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

him, Feed my lambs. He saith unto him again the second time, 
Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me ? He saith unto him, Yea, 
Lord :] thou knowest that I love thee f [He saith unto him, 
Feed my sheep. He saith unto him the third time, Simon, son of 
Jonas, lovest thou me ? Peter was grieved because he said unto 
him the third time, Lovest thou me ; and he said unto him] Lord, 
thou knowest all things ; thou knowest that I love thee f [Jesus 
saith unto him, Feed my sheep.*] 

[And she said, Truth, Lord :] yet the dogs eat of the crumbs 
which fall from their master's table f 

4. THE DOUBLE INTERROGATIVE SENTENCE. 

Rule XVII. As a whole, this sentence should be delivered 
with the upward slide to the disjunctive or, and with the down-, 
ward slide from it : as the parts may be either simple or com- 
pound, and if compound, close, compact or loose or semi-interrog- 
ative, their delivery, independently considered, must be modified 
accordingly. {See Plate, Fig. 5. See also Ch. III. Mod. Slides.) 

Examples. 

To be, or not to be ? 

Was it fancy or was it fact § 

Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another § 

Are the stars that gem the vault of the heavens above us, mere 
decorations of the nig-ht, or suns and centres of planetary systems § 

Is talent or genius confined to the rich and powerful ; or is it 
conferred indiscriminately by a benevolent Deity on poor and rich, 
and weak and powerful ? 

Do you question me as an honest man should do for my simple, 
true judgment? or would you have me speak after my custom, as 
being a professed tyrant of the sex 9 

Is there nothing that whispers to that right honorable gentle- 
man, that the crisis is too big, that the times are too gigantic, to be 
ruled by the little hackneyed and every-day means of ordinary 
corruption ; or are we to believe, that he has within himself a con- 
scious feeling, that disqualifies him from rebuking the ill-timed 
selfishness of his new allies ? 

Did those great Italian masters begin and proceed in their art 
without choice of method, and always draw with the same ease 
and freedom ; or did they observe some method : beginning with 
simple and elementary parts, an eye, a nose, a finger, which they 
drew with great pains and care ; often drawing the same thing in 

* See Note on preceding page. 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 251 

order to draw it correctly ; and so proceeding with patience and 
industry, till, after considerable length of time, they arrived at the 
masterly manner you speak of 9 

Is it the cold and languid speaker, whose words fall in such 
sluggish and drowsy motion from his lips, that they can promote 
nothing but the slumbers of his auditory, and minister opiates to 
the body, rather than stimulants to the mind ; is it the unlettered 
fanatic without method, without reason, with incoherent raving, 
and vociferous ignorance, calculated to fit his hearers, not for the 
kingdom of heaven, but for a hospital of lunatics ; is it even the 
learned, ingenious and pious minister of Christ, who, by neglect or 
contempt of the oratorical art, has contracted a whining, monoto- 
nous sing-song of delivery to exercise the patience of his flock, at 
the expense of other Christian graces ? or is it the genuine orator of 
heaven, with a heart sincere, upright and fervent : a mind stored 
with that universal knowledge, required as the foundation of the art : 
with a genius for the invention, a skill for the disposition, and a 
voice for the elocution of every argument to convince and every 
sentiment to persuade 9 

Will you believe that the pure system of Christian faith which 
appeared eighteen hundred years ago, in one of the obscurest 
regions of the Roman empire, at the moment of the highest mental 
cultivation and of the lowest moral degeneracy ; which superseded 
at once all the curious fabrics of pagan philosophy ; which spread 
almost instantaneously through the civilized world in opposition to 
the prejudices, the pride, and the persecution of the times ; which 
has already had the most beneficial influence on society, and been 
the source of almost all the melioration of the human character ; 
and which is now the chief support of the harmony, the domestic 
happiness, the moral and the intellectual improvement of the best 
part of the world ; — will you believe, I say, that this system 
originated in the unaided reflections of twelve Jewish fishermen on 
the sea of Galilee, with the son of a carpenter at their head ? or 
will you admit a supposition which solves all the wonders of this 
case : which accounts at once for the perfection of the system, and 
the miracle of its propagation : that Jesus was, what he professed 
to be, the prophet of God ; and that his apostles were, as they 
declared, empowered to perform the miracles which subdued the 
incredulity of the world 9 

Was it a wailing bird of the gloom, 

Which shrieks on the house of wo all night ; 

Or a shivering fiend that flew to a tomb 9 

Are thy wild children like thyself arrayed, 
Strong in immortal and unchecked delight 



252 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

Which cannot fade ; 

Or, to mankind allied : 
Toiling with wo, and passion's fiery sting, 
Like thine own home, where storms or peace preside, 

As the winds bring 9 

Does beauty ever deign to dwell, where health, 
And active use are strangers ; is her charm 
Confessed in aught, whose most peculiar ends 
Are lame and fruitless ; or did nature mean 
This pleasing call the herald of a lie, 
To hide the shame of discord and disease, 
And catch with fair hypocrisy the heart 
Of idle faith ? 

Wilt thou fly 
With laughing Autumn to the Atlantic isles, 
And range with him the Hesperian fields, and see 
Where'er his fingers touch the fruitful grain, 
The branches shoot'with gold ; where'er his step 
Marks the glad soil, the tender clusters grow 
With purple ripeness, and invest each hill 
As with the blushes of the evening sky ; 
Or wilt thou rather stoop thy vagrant plume, 
Where, gliding throuo-h his daughter's honored shades, 
The smooth Peneus from his glassy flood 
Reflects purpureal Tempe's pleasant scene 9 



O. THE SEMI-INTERROGATIVE SENTENCE. 

Rule XVIII. As the declarative or declarative exclamatory 
part of this sentence may form together with the interrogative 
either a close, compact or loose sentence, it must, of course, termi- 
nate with the bend or partial close : the interrogative part must be 
delivered like the species to which it belongs. 

The only exception to the first part of the rule, of which I am at present aware, is a variety 
of the single compact without correlative words, and having its first part imperative ; begin- 
ning, for example, with the word " suppose." In this case the compact delivery is exchanged 
for the loose ; that is, the declarative or declarative exclamatory part ends with partial close, 
instead of the bend, its appropriate termination. (See Ride VII. Exception 5.) 

Examples. 

Some have sneeringly asked, Are the Americans too poor to 
pay a few pounds on stamped paper ? 

But the gentleman inquires, why he was made the object of such 
a reply : why he was singled out ? 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 253 

And first I ask, what is that country : what is this golden prize 
for which we are to contend $ 

Then Peter said unto him, Lord, speakest thou this parable unto 
us, or unto all 9 

Friends of learning ! would you do homage at the shrine of liter- 
ature : would you visit her clearest founts ? 

And some of the Pharisees, who were with him, heard these 
words, and said unto him, Are we blind also ? 

Then the chief captain took him by the hand, and went with him 
aside privately, and asked him, What is that thou hast to tell me V 

I am sensible you will be ready to say, What is all this to the 
purpose ? 

Knowing this first : that there shall come in the last days, scoff- 
ers, walking after their own lusts, and saying, where is the promise 
of his coming ? 

He that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he 
love God whom he hath not seen ? 

He that planted the ear, shall he not hear ? he that formed the 
eye, shall he not see ? he that chastiseth the heathen, shall he, not 
correct ? he that teacheth man knowledge, shall he not know ? 

Thou therefore that teachest another, teachest thou not thyself ? 
thou that preachest, a man should not steal, dost thou steal ? thou 
that sayest a man should not commit adultery, dost thou commit 
adultery ? thou that abhorrest idols, dost thou commit sacrilege ? 
thou that makest thy boast of the law, through breaking the law, 
dishonorest thou God ? 

Though his wealth was that of the Lydian king in the plenitude 
of his prosperity and glory, yet was he happy ? 

But because the North joins hands with the South, shall the ini- 
quity go unpunished or unrebuked : has God's throne fallen before 
Mammon's ? 

Sir, when these sentiments shall become prevalent, What, think 
you, will become of that system : how long will it last after the 
payment of duties shall come to be considered a badge of servi- 
tude? 

When the African was first brought to these shores, would he 
have violated a solemn obligation by slipping his chain, and flying 
back to his native home : would he not have been bound to seize 
the precious opportunity of escape ? 

If the visit were often repeated, if the disappointment you re- 
ceived from this cause were frequent or perpetual, if you saw a 
systematic design of thwarting you by these galling and numerous 
interruptions, would you not cordially hate the visiter, and give 
the most substantial evidence of your hatred, too, by shunning or 
shutting him out ? 

22 



254 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

If the word spoken by angels, was steadfast, and every trans- 
gression and disobedience received a just recompense of reward, 
how shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation ; which at the 
first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed by those 
that heard him : God also bearing them witness both with signs 
and wonders, and divers miracles and gifts of the Holy Ghost, ac- 
cording to his own will ? 

If the widows and orphans, which this wasting evil has created, 
and is yearly multiplying, might all stand before you, could you 
witness their tears : listen to their details of anguish ? should they 
point to the murderers of their fathers, their husbands and their 
children, and lift up their voice and implore your aid to arrest an 
evil which has made them desolate, could you disregard their cry ? 
had you beheld a dying father conveyed bleeding and agonizing to 
his distracted family, had you heard their piercing shrieks, and 
witnessed their frantic agony, would you reward the savage man 
who had plunged them in distress ? had the duelist destroyed your 
neighbor, had your own father been killed by the man who solicits 
your suffrage, had your son been brought to your door, pale in 
death, and weltering in blood, laid low by his hand, would you 
think the crime a small one '? 

And while they are dropping round us like the leaves of autumn 
and scarce a week passes that does not call away some member of 
the veteran ranks, already so sadly thinned, shall we make no effort 
to hand down the traditions of their day to our children ; to pass 
the torch of liberty which we received in all the splendor of its 
first enkindling, bright and flaming to those who stand next us in 
the line ; so that when we shall come to be gathered to the dust 
where our fathers are laid, we may say to our sons and grandsons, 
If we did not amass, we have not squandered your inheritance of 
glory ? 

You were pleased with the lonely visitants, that brought beauty 
on their wings and melody in their throats ; but could you insure 
the continuance of this agreeable entertainment ? 

They could not behold the workings of the heart, the quivering 
lips, the trickling tears, the loud yet tremulous joys of the millions 
whom the vote of this night would forever save from the cruelty of 
corrupted power ; but was not the true enjoyment of their benevo- 
lence increased by the blessing being conferred unseen ? 

It is easy for us to maintain her doctrine, at this late day, when 
there is but. one party on the subject, an immense people ; but what 
tribute shall we bestow, what sacred pean shall we raise over the 
tombs of those who dared, in the face of unrivalled power, and 
within reach of majesty, to blow the blast of freedom throughout 
a subject continent ? 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 255 

We read how many days they could support the fatigues of a 
march ; how early they rose ; how late they watched ; how many 
hours they spent in the field, in the cabinet, in the court, in the 
study ; how many secretaries they kept employed ; in short, how 
hard they worked ; but who ever heard of its being said of a man 
in commendation that he could sleep fifteen hours out of the 
twenty-four ; that he could eat six meals a day ; and that he never 
got tired of his easy-chair ? 

Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what man- 
ner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godli- 
ness : looking for and hastening unto the coming of the day of 
God, wherein the heavens being on fire, shall be dissolved, and the 
elements shall melt with fervent heat ? 

Seeing then that the soul has many different faculties, or in other 
words, many different ways of acting ; that it can be intensely 
pleased, or made happy by all these different faculties, or ways of 
acting ; that it may be endowed with several latent faculties, which 
it is not at present in a condition to exert ; that we cannot believe 
the soul is endowed with any faculty which is of no use to it ; that 
whenever any one of these faculties is transcendently pleased, the 
soul is in a state of happiness ; and in the last place, considering 
that the happiness of another world is to be the happiness of the 
whole man ; who can question but that there is an infinite variety 
in these pleasures we are speaking of; and that the fulness of joy 
will be made up of all those pleasures which the nature of the soul 
is capable of receiving ? 

Kindly separated by nature and a wide ocean from the extermi- 
nating havoc of one quarter of the globe ; too high-minded to en- 
dure the degradations of the others ; possessing a chosen country, 
with room enough for our descendants to the thousandth and 
thousandth generation ; entertaining a due sense of our equal rights 
to the use of our own faculties, to the acquisitions of our own in- 
dustry, to honor and confidence from our fellow-citizens, resulting, 
not from birth, but our own actions, and their sense of them ; en- 
lightened by a benign religion, professed, indeed, and practised in 
various forms, yet all of them inculcating honesty, truth, temper- 
ance, gratitude, and the love of man; acknowledging and adoring 
an overruling Providence, which, by all its dispensations, proves 
that it delights in the happiness of man here, and in his greater 
happiness hereafter ; — with all these blessings, what more is neces- 
sary to make us a happy and prosperous people ? 

Brutes in our end and expectations, how can we be otherwise in 
our pursuits V 

Convince them of this, and will they not shudder at the thought 
of subverting their political constitution : of suffering it to degen- 
erate into aristocracy or monarchy ? 



256 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

Let the understanding remain uninformed till half the age of man 
is past, and what improvement is the best then likely to make ; and 
how irksome would it seem to be put upon any $ 

We find a Solomon discovering his error, acknowledging that he 
had erred, and bearing testimony to religion and virtue as alone 
productive of true happiness, indeed ; but where are we to look 
for another among the votaries of sensuality, thus affected : thus 
changed ? 

Suppose that out of compliment to the mockers of missionary 
zeal, we relinquished its highest, and, indeed, its identifying object ; 
suppose we confined our efforts exclusively to civilization, and con- 
sented to send the plow and the loom instead of the cross ; and 
admitting that upon this reduced scale of operation, we were as 
successful as could be desired, till we had even raised the man of 
the woods into the man of the city, and elevated the savage into 
the sage ; what, I ask, have we effected, viewing man, as with the 
New Testament in our hands, we must view him, in the whole 
range of bis existence ? 

Suppose you have a very valuable horse, gentle under the treat- 
ment of others, but ungovernable when you attempt to use him ; 
would you not endeavor, by all means, to conciliate his affections, 
and to treat him in a way most likely to render him tractable? or, 
if you have a dog, highly prized for his fidelity, watchfulness and 
care of your flocks ; who is fond of your shepherds and playful 
with them, and yet snarls whenever you come in his way; would 
you attempt to cure his faults by angry looks or words, or by any 
other marks of resentment ? 

It was his deliberate conviction, that there was not a virtuous 
man throughout the union, who would now think it criminal to 
smuggle into the country every article consumed in it ; and why V 

England is at peace with France and Spain ; but does she sup- 
press the names of Trafalgar and the Nile : does she overthrow 
the towers of Blenheim castle, eternal monuments of the disasters 
of France: does she tear down from the rafters of her chapels, 
where they have for ages waved in triumph, consecrated to the 
God of battles, the banners of Cressy and Agincourt ? No ; she 
is wiser : wiser did I say ? 

The baptism of John : was it from heaven, or of men ? 

Then said Jesus unto them, I also will ask you one thing : Is it 
lawful on the Sabbath to do good, or to do evil ? to save life or ■ to 
destroy it ? 

But to add reason to precedent, and to view this art in its use as 
well as its dignity : will it not be allowed of some importance, when 
it is considered, that eloquence is one of the most considerable 
auxiliaries of truth ? 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 257 

And when they were come, they say unto him, Master, we know 
that thou art true, and carest for no man ; for thou regardest not 
the person of men, but teachest the way of God in truth : Is it 
lawful to give tribute unto Caesar, or not § shall we give, or shall 
we not give ? 

We therefore confirm whatever, upon a single but unquestion- 
able evidence, has been produced from this house ; and shall we 
think of ratifying the acts of Csesar, yet abolish his laws: those 
laws which he himself, in our sight, repeated, pronounced, enact- 
ed : laws which he valued himself upon passing : laws in which he 
thought the system of our government was comprehended : laws 
which concern our provinces and our trials ? 

The imaginations of those whom I have the honor to address, 
will be able to heighten this contrast, by a hundred traits on either 
side, for which I have not time ; but even as I have presented it, 
will it be deemed extravagant, if I say, that there is a greater dif- 
ference between the educated child of civilized life and the New 
Zealand savage, than between the New Zealand savage and the 
ourang-outang ? 

He took that number merely to avoid a contradiction that might 
divert the current of debate into an improper channel ; for he was 
credibly informed the army did not amount to one half the number 
he had stated ; but taking it at three thousand, on what principle 
could ministers even justify confining the operations of this active 
and spirited general by so scanty a force ? 

He did not mean absolutely to say, that so many were actually 
in the service ; perhaps not a tenth part of them could be pro- 
duced ; but the account of them was to be seen on the table ; and 
what language could properly describe the fraudulent conduct of 
ministers in imposing so grievous a burden on the people without 
necessity ? 

He would take, however, if they pleased, the other alternative : 
he would suppose every man, charged in the estimate, really em- 
ployed ; and that it was necessary to keep eighty thousand on the 
defensive, that three thousand might be brought into the field : 
need there any thing else be urged to prove the ruinous tendency 
of the American war ? 

! say : what mystic spell is that, which deafens to our ear 
the voice of bleeding humanity, when it is aggravated by the 
shriek of dying thousands : which makes the very magnitude of 
the slaughter throw a softening disguise over its cruelties and 
horrors : which causes the eye to survey with indifference, the 
field that is crowded with the most revolting abominations, and 
arrests that sigh, which each individual would singly have drawn 

22* 



258 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

from us, by the reports of the many who have fallen, and breathed 
their last agony along with him ? 

Ungrateful sinners ! whence this scorn 

Of God's long suffering grace ? 

They leave their crimes for history to scan 

And ask, with busy scorn, Was this the man ? 

Tree ! why hast thou doffed thy mantle of green 
For the gorgeous garb of an Indian queen ? 

Once upon a raw and gusty day, 
The troubled Tiber chafing with its shores, 
Caesar savs to me, Darest thou, Cassius, now 
Leap in with me into this angry flood, 
And swim to yonder point ? 

But if the wanderer his mistake discern, 
Judge his own ways, and sigh for a return, 
Bewildered once, must he bewail his loss 
Forever and forever ? 

If human kindness meets return, 

And owns the grateful tie ; 
If tender thoughts within us burn 

To feel a friend is nigh ; 
Oh ! shall not warmer accents tell 

The gratitude we owe 
To Him, who died our fears to quell : 

Our more than orphan's wo ? 

While o'er our guilty land, Lord ! 
We view the terrors of the sword ; 

! whither shall the helpless fly : 
To whom, but thee, direct their cry ? 

When Heaven's aerial bow 
Spans with bright arch the glittering hills below, 
Why to yon mountain turns the musing eye, 
Whose sun-bright summit mingles with the sky : 
Why do those cliffs of shadowy tint appear 
More sweet than all the varied landscape near ? 

When summoned from the world and thee 

1 lay my head beneath the willow tree, 

Wilt thou, sweet mourner, at my stone appear 
And soothe my parted spirit lingering near : 
Oh ! wilt thou come at evening hour to shed 
The tears of memory o'er my narrow bed ; 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 259 

With aching temples on thy hand reclined, 
Muse on the last farewell, I leave behind ; 
Breathe a deep sigh to winds that murmur low 
And think on all my love and all my wo ? 

When slowly from the plains and nether woods, 

With all their winding streams and hamlets brown, 

Updrawn, the morning vapor lifts its veil, 

And through its fleecy folds, with softened rays, 

Like a still infant smiling in his tears, 

Looks through the early sun ; when from afar 

The gleaming lake betrays its wide expanse, 

And lightly curling on the dewy air, 

The cottage smoke doth wind its path to heaven ; 

When heaven's soft breath plays on the woodman's brow, 

And every hare-bell and wild tangled flower 

Smells sweetly from its cage of checkered dew ; 

Ay, and when huntsmen wind the merry horn, 

And from its covert starts the fearful prey ; 

Who, warmed with youth's blood in his swelling veins, 

Would, like a lifeless clod, outstretched lie : 

Shut up from all the fair creation offers ? 

Hard lot of man, to toil for the reward 
Of virtue, and yet lose ; wherefore hard ? 

'Tis she ; but why that bleeding bosom gored : 
Why dimly gleams the visionary sword ? 

Still in thought as free as ever, 
What are England's rights, I ask, 
Me from my delights to sever : 
Me to torture : me to task ? 

The Nymph must lose her female friend, 

If more admired than she ; 
But where will fierce contention end 

If flowers can disagree ? 

Ye call these red -browed brethren 

The insects of an hour, 
Crushed like the noteless worm amidst 

The regions of their power ; 
Ye drive them from their father's lands ; 

Ye break of faith the seal ; 
But can ye from the court of heaven 

Exclude their last appeal ? 



260 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

Ye see their unresisting tribes, 

With toilsome step and slow, 
On through the trackless desert pass, 

A caravan of wo ; 
Think ye the Eternal's ear is deaf ; 

His sleepless eye is dim : 
Think ye the soul's blood may not cry 

From that far land to him ? 

So shalt thou rest ; and what if thou shalt fall 
Unheeded by the living ; and no friend 
Take note of thy departure ? 

He clothes the lily ; feeds the dove ; 
The meanest insect feels his care ; 
And shall not man confess his love : 
Man, his offspring, and his heir ? 

The earth grew silent when thy voice departed : 
The home too lonely whence thy step had fled : 
What then was left for her the faithful-hearted ? 

Gold many hunted ; sweat and bled for gold ; 
Waked all the night, and labored all the day ; 
And what was this allurement, dost thou ask? 

And say : without our hopes, without our fears, 
Without the home that plighted love endears, 
Without the smile from partial beauty won, 
Oh ! what were man V 

I ask you once again : 
How comes it that the wondrous essence 
Which gave such vigor to those strong-nerved limbs, 
. Has leaped from its enclosure, and compelled 
This noble workmanship of nature thus 
To sink into a cold, inactive clod ? 

Unto the men, who see not as we see, 

Futurity was thought in ancient times, 

To be laid open ; and they prophesied ; 

And know we not that from the blind have flowed 

The highest, holiest raptures of the lyre, 

And wisdom married to immortal verse ? 

High matter thou enjoinest, prince of men ! 
Sad task and hard ; for how shall I relate 
To human sense the invisible exploits 
Of warring spirits : how, without remorse, 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 261 

The ruin of so many, glorious once, 

And perfect while they stood : how last unfold 

The secrets of another world, perhaps 

Not lawful to reveal ? 

Miscellaneous Examples of Compound Interrogative Sentences. 

For what purpose did the infinite Creator give existence to this 
majestic monument of his almighty power : for what purpose did 
he create the earth and the heavens, with all their unnumbered 
hosts ? 

Was it not evidently that he might communicate happiness ; and 
does not this design appear conspicuous on the open face of nature ? 

What is the plain and unequivocal indication of all those marks 
of infinite wisdom, and skilful contrivance in the general dispositions 
and in all parts of surrounding nature ? 

Is it not, that the Creator of all things is infinitely good ? 

Is there not a display of infinite goodness in the regular and 
harmonious disposition of the heavenly orbs ? 

Instead of this beautiful order, why was there not the most hor- 
rible confusion S. instead of benignant harmony of the spheres, why 
was there not a perpetual jar, and the most disastrous concussion ? 

Is there not a display of infinite goodness in the grandeur and 
beauty of the creation, so favorably adapted to elevate, to inspire 
with admiration and fill with the purest pleasure, the devout and 
contemplative mind ? 

Why was not the whole creation so formed as only to excite 
amazement, terror and despair ? 

Is there not a display of infinite goodness in the beautiful scenery 
of our globe, so agreeably diversified with continents and seas, 
islands and lakes, mountains and plains, hills and valleys, adapted 
to various beneficial purposes, and abounding with productions, in 
endless variety, for the convenience, the support and happiness of 
its diversified inhabitants ? 

Why was not the whole earth like the burning sands of Lybia, 
or the rugged and frozen mountains of Zembla : why was it not 
one wide and dreary waste, producing only briers and thorns and 
poisonous and bitter fruits ? 

Is there not a display of infinite goodness in the grateful vicissi- 
tudes of the seasons : each bearing upon its bosom its peculiar 
delights: the spring arrayed in the most beautiful verdure and 
decorated with flowers ; the summer abounding with the most 
delightful prospects, and teeming with luxuriance ; autumn loaded 
with golden harvests, and the richest variety of fruits ; and even 



262 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 






winter, supplying in social enjoyments, and in the noble pleasures 
of study and contemplation, what it lacks in external charms ? 

Why was not the whole year one continued scene of dull uni- 
formity, or so irregular in its changes, as utterly to baffle all the 
calculations, and arrangements and pursuits of life ; or why was noc 
every sight a spectacle of horror : every sound a shriek of distress : 
every sweet a most pungent bitter : every gale a blast of pestilence ? 

Is it not because the Creator and Preserver of the world is a 
being of infinite goodness ? 

Is it wise or prudent, then, sir, in preparing to breast the storm, 
if it must come, to talk to this nation of its incompetency to repel 
European aggression ; to lower its spirit ; to weaken its moral 
energy ; and to qualify it for easy conquest and base submission ? 

If there be any reality in the dangers which are supposed to 
encompass us, should we not animate the people and adjure them 
to believe, as I do, that our resources are ample; and that we can 
bring into the field a million of freemen ready to exhaust their last 
drop of blood, and to spend their last cent in defence of the country, 
its liberty, and its institutions ? 

Those who murdered Banquo : what did they win by it $* Sub- 
stantial good ? permanent power ? or disappointment rather, and 
sore mortification : dust and ashes : the common fate of vaulting 
ambition, overleaping itself 9 Did not even-handed justice, ere long, 
commend the poisoned chalice to their own lips ? did they not soon 
find that for another they had " filed their mind ;" that their am- 
bition, though apparently for the moment successful, had but put 
a barren sceptre in their grasp ; aye, sir, 

A barren sceptre in their gripe, 
Thence to be wrenched by an unlineal hand : 
No son of theirs succeeding ? 

If we wished to find an example of a community as favored as 
any on earth with a salubrious climate ; a soil possessed of precisely 
that degree of fertility which is most likely to create a thrifty hus- 
bandry ; advantages for all the great branches of industry, com- 
merce, agriculture, the fisheries, manufactures, and the mechanic 
arts ; free institutions of government ; establishments for education, 
charity, and moral improvement ; a sound public sentiment ; a 
widely diffused love of order ; a glorious tradition of ancestral 
renown ; a pervading moral sense ; and an hereditary respect for 
religion : if we wished to find a land where a man could desire to 
live, to educate and establish his children, to grow old and die; 

* Here and in a few other instances I have connected sentences in their nature distinct, and 
to he treated as independent. In every case of this kind, the interrogation point is followed 
by a capital letter. 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 263 

where could we look, where could we wander, beyond the limits of 
our own ancient and venerable state ? 

Is it any proof of greatness, to be able, at the age of seventy- 
three, to take the lead in a successful and bloodless revolution : to 
change the dynasty : to organize, exercise and abdicate a military 
command of three and a half millions of men : to take up, to per- 
form and lay down the most momentous, delicate and perilous du- 
ties, without passion, without hurry, and without selfishness ? is it 
great, to disregard the bribes of titles, office, money : to live, to 
labor and suffer for great public ends alone : to adhere to princi- 
ples under all circumstances : to stand before Europe and America 
conspicuous, for sixty years, in the most responsible stations, the 
acknowledged admiration of all good men ? 

Is this the time, it may be asked, to complain of obstacles to the 
extinction of war, when peace has been given to the nations, and 
we are assembled to celebrate its triumphs ? 

Upon him, even upon him, graceful and engaging as he may be 
by the lustre of his many accomplishments, the saying of the Bible 
does not fail of being realized : that the heart of man is deceitful 
above all things and desperately wicked : who can know it ? 

The disciples of John could not have such a clear view of the 
ground of acceptance before God, as an enlightened disciple of the 
Apostles, yet the want of this clear view did not prevent them 
from being-right subjects for John's preparatory instructions ; and 
what were those instructions ? Soldiers were called on to give up 
their violence, and publicans their exactions, and rich men the con- 
finement of their own wealth to their own gratification ; and will 
any man hesitate for a moment to decide whether those who fol- 
lowed them, were in the likeliest state for receiving light and im- 
provement from the subsequent teachings of the Saviour ? 

The reforming publicans and harlots of John, were in a state of 
greater readiness to receive this truth, than either the Pharisees, or 
those publicans and harlots, who, unmindful of John, still persisted 
in their iniquities ; and who will be in greater readiness to receive 
this truth in the present day ? Will it be the obstinate and deter- 
minate doers of all that is sinful, and that too in the face of a call, 
that they should do works meet for repentance ? or will it be those, 
who, under the influence of this call, do, what the disciples of John 
did before them : turn them from the evil of their manifest iniqui- 
ties, and so give proof of their earnestness in the way of salvation 8 

If it was in behalf of a careless world that the costly apparatus 
of redemption was reared ; if it was in the full front and audacity 
of their most determined rebellion, that God laid the plan of recon- 
ciliation ; if it was for the sake of men sunk in the very depths of 
ungodliness that he constructed his overtures of peace, and sent 



264 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 






forth his Son with them amongst our loathsome and polluted 
dwelling-places ; if to get at his strayed children, he had thus to 
find his way through all those elements of impiety and ungodliness 
which are most abhorrent to the sanctity of his nature ; think you, 
my brethren, think you, that the God, who made such an ad- 
vancing movement towards the men whose faces were utterly 
away from him, is a God who will turn his own face away from 
the man who is moving toward him and earnestty seeking after 
him, if haply he may find him ? 

When one hears of negroes, who, upon the death of their masters, 
or upon changing their service, hang themselves upon the next tree, 
as it frequently happens in our American plantations, says Mr. Ad- 
dison, who can forbear admiring their fidelity, though it expresses 
itself in so dreadful a manner ; what might not that savage great- 
ness of soul, which appears in these wretches on many occasions, 
be raised to, were it properly directed ; and what color of excuse 
can there be for the contempt with which we treat this part of our 
species : that we should not put them upon the common footing of 
humanity : that we should only set an insignificant fine upon the 
man who murders them : nay, that we should as much as in us 
lies, cut them off from the prospect of happiness in another world, 
as well as in this, and deny them that which we look upon as the 
proper means of attaining it ? 

Is there all day long, a felt solemnity on your spirits? because of 
God, which follows you whithersoever you go, and causes you to 
walk with him in the world ; are you familiarized to the habit of 
submitting your will to his will ; have you ever for an hour to- 
gether, looked upon yourselves in the light of being the servants of 
another and have accordingly run and labored as at the bidding of 
another ? or, utter strangers to this, do you walk in the counsels of 
your own hearts ? 

And as they departed, Jesus began to say unto the multitudes 
concerning John, What went ye out into the wilderness to see V 
A reed shaken by the wind ? But what went ye out to see ? A 
man clothed in soft raiment ? They that wear soft raiment, are in 
kings' houses ; but what went ye out to see ? A prophet ? 

Where is the wise, where is the scribe, where is the disputer of 
this world ? 

Thou wilt say then unto me, Why doth he yet find fault ; for who 
hath resisted his will ? ~Na.y but, man, who art thou that re- 
pliest against God ? Shall the thing formed, say unto him that 
formed it, why hast thou made me thus? hath not the potter power 
over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honor and 
another unto dishonor ? What, if God, willing to show his wrath 
and make his power known, endured with much long-suffering the 






THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 265 

vessels of wrath fitted for destruction; and that he might make 
known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy which he had 
afore prepared unto glory ; even us, whom he hath called, not of the 
Jews only, but also of the Gentiles ? 

At which time would Mr. Southey pronounce the constitution 
more secure? In 1639, when Laud presented this report to 
Charles ; or now, when thousands of meetings openly collect mil- 
lions of dissenters : when designs against the tithes are openly 
avowed : when books attacking not only the establishment, but the 
first principles of Christianity, are openly sold in the streets ? 

Where were these guardians of the constitution, these vigilant 
sentinels of our rights and liberties, when this law was passed ? 
Were they asleep upon their post? Where was the gentleman 
from New York, who has on this debate, made such a noble stand 
in favor of the constitution : where was the Ajax Telamon of his 
party ; or, to use his own more correct expression, the faction to 
which he belongs : where was the hero with his sevenfold shield, 
not of bull's hide, but of brass, prepared to prevent or to punish 
this Trojan rape, which he now sees meditated upon the constitu- 
tion of his country by a wicked faction : where was Hercules, that 
he did not crush this den of robbers that broke into the sanctuary 
of the constitution ? Was he forgetful of his duty ; were his nerves 
unstrung ; or was he the very leader of the band that broke down 
these constitutional ramparts 9 

Had a stranger at this time gone into the province of Oude, 
ignorant of what had happened since the death of Sujah Dowla ; 
(that man, who, with a savage heart, had still great lines of character, 
and who, with all his ferocity in war, had still, with a cultivating 
hand, preserved to his country the riches which it derived from 
benignant skies, and a prolific soil ;) if this stranger, ignorant of all 
that had happened in the short interval, and observing the wide and 
general devastation, and all the horrors of the scene ; of plains un- 
clothed and brown ; of vegetables burnt up and extinguished ; of 
villages depopulated and in ruin ; of temples unroofed and perishing; 
of reservoirs broken down and dry : he would naturally inquire, 
What war has thus laid waste the fertile fields of this once beautiful 
and opulent country V what evil dissensions have happened, thus 
to tear asunder and separate the happy societies that once possessed 
those villages? what disputed succession, what religious Vage, has 
with unholy violence, demolished those temples, and disturbed fer- 
vent but unobtrusive piety in the exercise of its duties ? what merci- 
less enemy has thus spread the horrors of fire and sword ? what 
severe visitation of Providence has dried up the fountain, and taken 
from the face of the earth every vestige of verdure ? or rather, what 
monsters have stalked over the country, tainting and poisoning, 

23 



266 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

with pestiferous breath, what the voracious appetite could not 
devour ? 

Know you not 

The fire, that mounts the liquor till run o'er, 

In seeming to augment it, wastes it ? 
A living power 

Is virtue ; or no better than a name 

Fleeting as health or beauty, and unsound 9 

Can I forget, canst thou forget, 

"When playing with thy golden hair, 

How quick thy fluttering heart did move ? 

What shall the man deserve of human kind, 

Whose happy skill and industry combined 

Shall prove, what argument could never yet, 

The Bible an imposture and a cheat? 

Can you question that the soul 
Inherits an allegiance, not by choice 
To be cast off upon an oath proposed 
By each new upstart notion ? 

But where is now the goodly audit ale: 
The purseproud tenant never known to fail : 
The farm which never yet was left on hand : 
The marsh reclaimed to most improving land: 
The impatient hope of the expiring lease, 
The doubling rental ? 

Could thine art 
Make them indeed immortal, and impart 
The purity of heaven to earthly joys ; 
Expel the venom and not blunt the dart, 
The dull satiety which all destroys ; 
And root from out the soul the deadly weed that cloys? 

For who could sink and settle to that point 
Of selfishness, so senseless who could be, 
So long and perseveringly to mourn 
For any object of his love, removed 
From this unstable world, if he could fix 
A satisfying view upon the state 
Of pure, imperishable blessedness, 
Which reason promises, and Holy Writ 
Ensures to all believers ? 

Who would not wish to be from wealth exempt, 
Since riches point to misery and contempt ? 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 267 

But why so short is love's delightful hour : 
Why fades the dew on beauty's sweetest flower: 
Why can no hymned charm of music heal 
The sleepless woes impassioned spirits feel ? 

You are excused, 
But will you be more justified? 
You come to take your stand here, and behold 
The Lady Anne pass from her coronation. 
If in that frame no deathless spirit dwell, 
If that faint murmur be the last farewell, 
If faith unite the faithful but to part, 
Why is their memory sacred to the heart : 
Why does the brother of my childhood seem 
Restored awhile in every pleasing dream : 
Why do I joy the lovely spot to view, . 
Where artless friendship blessed wheu life was new $ 

Oh God ! when thou 
Dost scare the world with tempests, set on fire 
The heavens with falling thunderbolts, or fill, 
With all the waters of the firmament, 
The swift dark whirlwind that uproots the woods, 
And drowns the villages ; when, at his call, 
Uprises the great deep and throws himself 
Upon the continent, and overwhelms 
Its cities ; who forgets not at the sight 
Of these tremendous tokens of thy power, 
His pride, and lays his strifes and follies by ? 
'Tis strange the miser should his cares employ, 
To gain those riches he can ne'er enjoy ; 
Is it less strange the prodigal should waste 
His wealth to purchase what he ne'er can taste ? 

Breezes of the South ! 
Who tossed the golden and the flame-like flowers, 
And pass the prairie-hawk, that, poised on high, 
Flaps his broad wings, yet moves not, ye have played 
Among the palms of Mexico, and vines 
Of Texas, and have crisped the limpid brooks 
That from the fountains of Sonora glide 
Into the calm Pacific ; have ye fanned 
A nobler or a lovelier scene than this ? 
Ye are not sad to see the gathered grain, 
Nor when their mellow fruit the orchards cast, 
Nor when the mellow woods shake down the ripened 



268 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

Ye sigh not when the sun, his course fulfilled, 

His glorious course, rejoicing earth and sky, 

In the soft evening, when the winds are stilled, 

Sinks where his islands of refreshment lie, 

And leaves the smile of his departure spread 

O'er the warm colored heaven, and ruddy mountain head ; 

Why weep ye then for him, who having Avon 

The bounds of man's appointed years, at last, 

Life's blessings all enjoyed, life's labors done, 

Serenely to his final rest has passed, 

While the soft memory of his virtues, yet 

Lingers like twilight hues, when the bright sun is set ? 

Whence is man ; 
Why formed at all ; and wherefore as he is : 
Where must he find his maker : with what rites 
Adore him V Will he hear, accept and bless ; 
Or does he sit regardless of his works? 
Has man within him an immortal seed ; 
Or does the tomb take all ? If he survive 
His ashes, where $ and in what weal or wo ? 

Thou smilest f These comparisons seem high 
To those who scan all things with dazzled eye, 
Linked with the unknown name of one whose doom 
Has naught to do with glory or w T ith Rome, 
With Chili, Hellas, or with Araby — * 
Thou smilest f [Smile : 'tis better thus than sigh.] 

A nobleman sleeps here to night : see that 

All is in order in the damask chamber ; 

Keep up the stove ; I will myself to the cellar ; 

And Madame Idenstein 

Shall furnish forth the bed-apparel ; for 

To say the truth, they are marvellous scant of this 

Within the palace precincts, since his highness 

Left it some dozen years ago ; and then 

His excellency will sup doubtless f 

Shall thy good uncle and thy brother Lucius, 

And thou, and I, sit round about some fountain, 

Looking all downwards, to behold our cheeks 

How they are stained, like meadows yet not dry, 

With miry slime left on them by a flood ; 

And in the fountain shall we gaze so long, 

* This sentence thus abruptly broken off, is a single compact declarative with the first part 
only expressed. The correlative words are, indeed— but. 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 269 

Till the fresh taste be taken from that clearness 
And make a brine-pit with our bitter tears ; 
Or shall we cut away our hands like thine ; 
Or shall we bite our tongues, and in dumb shows 
Pass the remainder of our hateful days ? 

CLASS III. COMPOUND EXCLAMATORY SENTENCES. 

Jompound exclamatory sentences, like simple, being nothing more than declarative and in- 
terrogative sentences, employed as exclamations, I shall lay down one general rule for the 
delivery of them all ; and I shall adduce no greater number of examples than may be neces- 
sary to show usage and afford practice. 

It should be observed that the exclamation point, like the interrogation, is not always put 
at the end of the sentence only, but frequently at the end of the parts ; and in loose sentences 
very frequently. It should be observed further, that the whole of a sentence is not always ex- 
clamatory, even where it is not fragmentary, nor semi-exclamatory. The first part, and often 
an imperfect portion of the first part, is pointed, and should be treated as exclamatory, while 
the remainder is simply declarative or interrogative ; and not seldom an exclamation point is 
found at the end of a sentence, when only the last part, and perhaps a few words of the last 
part, have an exclamatory character. I may add that occasionally a sentence is pointed as an 
exclamation, when it is difficult to perceive why : the degree of emotion expressed, being 
scarcely sufficient to justify it. Frequent examples of such sentences will be found in the fol- 
lowing pages. I adduce them, however, as I found them. — Of the occasional aberrations no- 
ticed above, I have thought it unnecessary to give illustrations : confining myself to entire 
sentences, pointed and treated as exclamatory. 

General Rule XIX. Exclamatory compound sentences are 
delivered like the corresponding declarative and interrogative 
compound sentences from which they are derived, with an addi- 
tional expression of emotion. 

I. DECLARATIVE EXCLAMATORY SENTENCES. 
1. CLOSE DECLARATIVE. 

Examples. 

The death of Socrates, peaceably philosophizing with his friends', 
is the most pleasant that could be desired ! 

Impart to them, in addition to their hereditary valor', that con- 
fidence of success which springs from thy presence ! 

Meek champions of truth' ! no stain of private interest or of 
innocent blood is on the spotless garment of your renown ! 

The winds which sweep along the fields, once blooming with 
groves sacred to the Muses', and over the ruins of temples erected 
for the arts and sciences', bear on their wings the sighs of expiring 
widows ! 

Do not, I implore you, chieftains, countrymen, do not, I implore 
you, renew the foul barbarities, your insatiate avarice has inflicted 
on this wretched, unoffending race ! 

I curse the bond of blood by which you are united ! May fen 
division, infamy and rout, defeat your projects, and rebuke youi 
hopes ! On you and on your children be the peril of the innocent 
blood which shall be shed this day ! 

23* 



270 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 






I remember to have seen, not long since, a charge to the grand 
jury, by a very eminent English judge, in which the practice of 
boxing is commended, and the fear is expressed that popular 
education has been pushed too far ! 

I do not go too far in saying, that there have been cases of re- 
captured Africans, brought within the jurisdiction of the United 
States, who, for aught they gained by their liberation, might as 
well have remained in the hands of the slave-trader! 

May our land be a land of liberty, the seat of virtue, the asylum 
of the oppressed, a name and a praise in the whole earth, until 
the last shock of time shajl bury the empires of the world in one 
common undistinguished ruin ! 

In the structure of their characters, in the course of their action, 
in the striking coincidences which marked their high career, in the 
lives and in the deaths of the illustrious men, whose virtues and 
services we have met to commemorate, and in that voice of admi- 
ration and gratitude which has since burst, with one accord, from 
the twelve millions of freemen who people these States, there is a 
moral sublimity which overwhelms the mind, and hushes all its 
powers into silent amazement ! 

Bring with thee 
The headlong atheist, who laughs at heaven, 
And impiously ascribes events to chance, 
To help to solve this wonderful enigma ! 

The scared owl, on pinions gray, 
Breaks from the rustling boughs, 
And down the lone vale sails away 
To more profound repose ! 

The very angels quit 
Their mansions, unsusceptible of change, 
Amid your pleasant bowers to sit, 
And through your sweet vicissitudes to range ! 

A single step, that freed me from the skirts 
Of the blind vapor, opened to my view 
Glory beyond all glory ever seen 
By waking sense, or by the dreaming soul ! 

Thy life I would gladly sustain, 

Till summer comes up from the south, and with crowds 

Of thy brethren, a march thou shouldst sound through the 

clouds, 
And back to the forests again ! 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 271 

Fragmentary Close. 

[We have not such another man to die — ] Washington and 
Hamilton in five years ! 

Absurd and futile attempt ! [As well might you quench the 
stars.] 

[He launches forth upon the unknown deep, to discover a new 
world, under the patronage of Ferdinand and Isabella.] The 
patronage of Ferdinand and Isabella ! [Let us dwell for a mo- 
ment on the auspices under which our country was brought to 
light.] The patronage of Ferdinand and Isabella ! 

The. [Reads.] [A tedious brief scene of young Pyramus, 
And his love Thisbe : very tragical mirth.] 
Merry and tragicalM tedious and brief! 
That is, hot ice, and wondrous strange snow. 

ShylocJc. My own flesh and blood to rebel ! 

Par. [Good, very good : it is so then. Good, very good : let 
it be concealed awhile.] 

Ber. Undone, and forfeited to cares forever ! 

That a king's children should be so conveyed, 
So slackly guarded, and the search so slow 
That could not trace them' !* 

Ah ! that deceit should steal such gentle shapes, 
And with a visor hide deep vice' ! 

2. COMPACT DECLARATIVE. 

1. Simple Compact. 
Examples. 

If you see my limbs convulsed', my te.eth clenched', my hair 
bristling', and the cold dews trembling on my brow', then seize me v ! 
rouse me v ! snatch me from my bed ! 

Oh God' ! if thou art still the widow's husband, and the father 
of the fatherless', if in the fulness of thy goodness there be mercies 
in v store for miserable mortals', pity, pity this afflicted mother, 
and grant that her hapless orphans may find a friend, a benefactor, 
a father in thee ! 

When oblivion shall have swept away thrones, kingdoms and 
principalities ; when every vestige of human greatness, and gran- 

* This and the following example are fragmentary varieties of common occurrence. The 
conclusion of the sentence is understood : e. g. " That a king's children," &c, &c, is unac- 
countable ; or, is an extraordinary circumstance. Breaking off, as it does, at imperfect i 
the sentence necessarily terminates with the bend. ^ 



272 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 






deur and glory shall have mingled into dust, and the last period of 
time have become extinct ; eternity itself shall catch the glowing 
theme, and dwell with increasing rapture on his name ! 

When I shall be found, sir, in my place here in the senate, or 
elsewhere, to sneer at public merit, because it happened to spring 
up beyond my own State and neighborhood; when I refuse, for 
any such cause, or for any cause, the homage due to American 
talent, to elevated patriotism, to sincere devotion to liberty and the 
country ; or if I see an uncommon endowment of heaven ; if I see 
extraordinary capacity and virtue in any son of the South ; and if 
moved by local prejudice, or gangrened by State jealousy, I get 
up here to abate the tithe of a hair from his just character and just 
fame, may my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth ! 

Illustrious as are your meiits, yet far, Oh ! very far, distant be 
the day when any inscription shall bear your name, or any tongue 
pronounce its eulogy ! 

Happy, happy were it for us, did nature constantly appear to us 
as it really is, animated and enlivened by its glorious Author ! 

0, Hamilton ! great would be the relief of my mind, w r ere I per- 
mitted to exchange the arduous duty of attempting to portray the 
varied excellence of thy character, for the privilege of venting the 
deep and unavailing sorrow which swells my bosom, at the remem- 
brance of the gentleness of thy nature, thy splendid talents and 
placid virtues ! 

You have vanquished him in the field ; strive now to rival him 
in the arts of peace ! 

In his hurried march, time has but looked at their imagined im- 
mortality ; and all its varieties, from the palace to the tomb, have, 
with their ruins, erased the very impression of his footsteps ! 

Talk to them of Naples, of Spain or of South America ; they 
stand forth zealots for the doctrine of divine right ; which has now 
come back to us, like a thief from transportation, under the alias 
of legitimacy ! 

We charge him (Charles I.) with having broken his coronation 
oath ; and we are told that he kept his marriage vow ! We accuse 
him of having given up his people to the merciless inflictions of the 
most hot-headed and hard-hearted of prelates ; and the defence is, 
that he took his little son on his knee and kissed him ! We cen- 
sure him for having violated the articles of the petition of right, 
after having, for good and valuable considerations, promised to 
observe them ; and we are informed that he was accustomed to 
hear prayers at six o'clock in the morning ! 

Recounting the dark catalogue of abuses which they had suffered, 
and appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude 
of their intentions ; in the name and by the authority of the people, 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 273 

the only fountain of legitimate power, they shook off forever their 
allegiance to the British crown, and pronounced the united colonies 
an independent Nation ! 

Flung into life in the midst of a revolution that quickened every 
energy of a people who acknowledge no superior, he commenced 
his course, a stranger by birth, and a scholar by charity ! 

When thy surges no longer shall roll', 
And that firmament's length is drawn back like a scroll', 
Then, then shall the spirit, that sighs by thee now, 
Be more mighty, more lasting, more chainless than thou ! 

Though boundless snows the withered heath deform', 
And the dim sun scarce wanders through the storm' ; 
Yet shall the smile of social love repay, 
With mental light, the melancholy day ! 

Though glory spread thy name from pole to pole, 
Though thou art merciful and brave and just ; 
Philip, reflect, thou art posting to the goal, 
Where mortals mix in undistinguished dust ! 

O would the scandal vanish with my life, 
Then happy were to me ensuing death ! 

impotent estate of human life, 
Where hope and fear maintain eternal strife : 
Where fleeting joy does lasting doubt inspire, 
And most we question what we most admire ! 

Oh ! if servility with supple knees, 
Whose trade it is to smile, to crouch, to please ; 
If smooth dissimulation, skilled to grace 
A devil's purpose with an angel's face ; 
If smiling peeresses, and simpering peers, 
Encompassing his throne a few short years ; 
If the gilt carriage and the pampered steed, 
That wants no driving, and disdains the lead ; 
If guards, mechanically formed in ranks, " 
Playing, at beat of drum, their martial pranks, 
Should'ring and standing as if struck to stone, 
While condescending majesty looks on ; 
If monarchy consist in such base things, 
Sighing, I say again, I pity kings ! 

0, had the gods done so, I had not now 
Worthily termed them merciless to us ! 



274 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

Fragmentary Single Compact Sentences. 
Examples. 

Bootless speedy 
When cowardice pursues and valor flies ! 

Might I be 
As speechless, deaf and dead as he 7 ! 

Gods 7 ! if he do not die 

But for one moment, one, till I eclipse 

Conception with the scorn of those calm lips 7 ! 

[Cat, Yet who has stirred ? Aurelius, you paint the air 

With passion's pencil.] 
Aur. Were my will a sword 7 ! 

[Cass. Will you dine with me to-morrow?] 
Casca. Ay, if I be alive, and your mind hold, and your dinner 
be worth the eating' ! 

Would it might please your grace 
On our entreaties to amend your fault 7 ! 

Were I a thunderbolt 7 ! 

2. Double Compact. 
Examples. 

I know not what course others may take 7 , but, as for me, give 
me liberty or give me death ! 

They are not fighting 7 ; do not disturb them 7 ; they are merely 
pausing ! This man is not expiring with agony'; that man is not 
dead 7 ; he is only pausing ! They are not angry with one another'; 
they have now no cause for quarrel'; but their country thinks there 
should be a pause !* 

He is not content to triumph over the Gauls, the Egyptians and 
Pharnaces'; he must triumph over his own countrymen ! 

He is not content to cause the statue of Scipio and Petrius to be 
carried before him'; he must be graced by that of Cato : he is not 
content with the simple effigy of Cato'; he must exhibit that of his 
suicide ! He is not satisfied to insult the Romans with triumphing 
over the death of liberty'; they must gaze upon the representation 
of her expiring agonies, and mark the writhings of her last fatal 
struggle ! 

* This paragraph is, correctly speaking, a compound declarative perfect loose with double 
compact parts. But the capital letters show that the parts are here treated as independent 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 275 

They did not know that the angel of the Lord would go forth 
with them, and smite the invaders of their sanctuary ; they did not 
know that generation after generation, would, on this day, rise up 
and call them blessed ; that their names would be handed down, 
from father to son, the penman's theme, and the poet's inspiration ; 
challenging, through countless years, the jubilant praises of an 
emancipated people, and the plaudits of an admiring world ; no ; 
they knew only, that the arm, which should protect, was oppress- 
ing them, and they shook it off : that the chalice presented to their 
lips was a poisonous one, and they dashed it away ! 

The wonder is not that two men have died on the same day, but 
that two such men, after having performed so many, and such 
splendid services in the cause of liberty, after the multitude of 
other coincidences which seem to have linked their destinies to- 
gether, after having lived so long together, the objects of their 
country's joint veneration, after having been spared to witness the 
great triumph of their toils at home, and looked together from Pis- 
gah's top on the sublime effect of that grand impulse which they 
had given to the same glorious cause throughout the world, should 
on this fiftieth anniversary of the day on which they had ushered 
that cause into the light, be both caught up to heaven, together, in 
the midst of their raptures ! 

IsTay, sneak not off thus cowardly ; poor souls 

Ye are as destitute of information 

As is the lifeless subject of my thoughts ! 

I have no mother, for she died, 

When I was very young ; 
But her memory still around my heart, 

Like morning mists, has hung ! 

Oh mother, mother ! do not jest 

On such a theme as this ! 
Though I was but a little child, 

Bitterly I cried, 
And clung to thee in agony, 

When my poor father died ! 

But triumph not, ye peace-enamored few'; 
Fire, nature, genius, never dwelt with you''; 
For you no fancy consecrates the scene, 
Where rapture uttered vows, and wept between'; 
'Tis yours, unmoved to sever and to meet : 
No pledge is sacred, and no home is sweet ! 



276 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

3. Loose Sentences. 
1. Perfect Loose. 

If any', speak v ; for him have I offended ! 

Time flies x : words are unavailing^: the chieftains declare for in- 
stant battle ! 

Too late have I come to the knowledge of thee v : too late have I 
begun to love thee ! 

Men have been frightened into intellectual dwarfs^ ; and the 
beasts of the field and the forests have not attained more than half 
their ordinary growth ! 

It seems, gentlemen, this is an age of reason^ : the time and the 
person are at last arrived, that are to dissipate the errors that have 
overspread the past generations of ignorance ! 

Not one shall survive to be enslaved ; for ere the tri-colored 
flag shall wave over our prostrate republic, the bones of four mil- 
lions of Americans shall whiten the shores of their country ! 

And may the disciples of Washington then see, as we now see, 
the flag of the Union floating on the top of the Capitol ; and then, 
as now, may the sun in his course visit no land more free, more 
happy, more lovely, than this our own country ! 

In caves and forests will I hide myself ; with tigers and with 
savage beasts will I commune ; and when, at length, we meet 
again before the blessed tribunal of that Deity whose mild doc- 
trines, and whose mercies, ye have this day renounced, then shall 
ye feel the agony and grief of soul, which now tear the bosom of 
your weak accuser ! 

The substantial clothing of our industrious classes, is now the 
growth of the American soil, and the texture of the American 
loom ; the music of the water-wheel is heard on the banks of our 
thousand rural streams ; and enterprise and skill, with wealth, re- 
finement and prosperity in their train, have studded the seashore 
with populous cities, are making their great progress of improve- 
ment through the interior, and sowing towns and villages, as it 
were, broadcast through the country ! 

May the fires of their genius and courage animate and sustain 
us in our contest, and bring it to a like glorious result : may it be 
carried on with singleness to the objects, that alone summoned us 
to it as a great and imperious duty, irksome, yet necessary : may 
there be a willing, a joyful immolation of all selfish passions on 
the altar of a common country : may the hearts of our com- 
batants be bold, and, under a propitious heaven, their swords flash 
victory : may a speedy peace bless us, and the passions of war go 
off ; leaving in their place a stronger love of country and of each 
other ! 






THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 277 

The pilgrim who reaches this valley of tears, 
Would fain hurry by x ; and, with trembling and fears, 
He is launched on the wreck- covered river ! 

Strike till the last armed foe expires v : 
Strike for your altars and your fires N : 
Strike for the green graves of vour sires N ; 
God and your native land ! 

All search was vain, and years had passed v : that child was ne'er 

forgot, 
When once a daring hunter climbed unto a lofty spot x : 
From thence, upon a rugged crag the chamois never reached, 
He saw an infant's fleshless bones the elements had bleached ! 

There then she had found a grave : 
Within that chest had she concealed herself, 
Fluttering with joy, the happiest of the happy, 
When a spring lock that lay in ambush there, 
Fastened her down forever ! 

Last noon beheld them full of lusty life : 
Last eve, in beauty's circle proudly gay : 
The midnight brought the signal-sound of strife : 
The morn, the marshalling in arms : the day, 
Battle's magnificently stern array ! 

From pavement rough, or frozen ground, 
The engine's rattling wheels resound ; 

And soon before his eyes, 
The lurid flames, with horrid glare, 

Mingled with murky vapors, rise 
In wreathy folds upon the air, 

And veil the frowning skies ! 



2. Imperfect Loose. 

Examples. 

To sum up all in one word, it is our country v : our dear native 
land! 

This, be it remembered, has been the fruit of intellectual exer- 
tion x : the triumph of mind ! 

It is the best classic the world has ever seen v : the noblest that 
lias ever honored and dignified the language of mortals ! 

He aspired to be the highest^ : above the people x : above the 
authorities v : above the laws x : above his country ! 

24 



278 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 






It was the spirit of liberty which still abides on the earth, and 
has its home in the bosom of the brave v : which but yesterday in 
beautiful France, restored the violated charter^ : which even now 
bums brightly on the towers of Belgium, and has rescued Poland 
from the tyrant's grasp N : making their sons, aye, and their daugh- 
ters too, the wonder and the admiration of the world v ; the pride 
and glory of the human race ! 

It is this, which consecrating the humble circle of the hearth, 
will at times extend itself to the circumference of the horizon : 
which nerves the arm of the patriot to save his country : which 
lights the lamp of the philosopher to amend man : which will 
yet invigorate the martyr to merit immortality : which, when the 
world's agony is passed, and the glory of another is dawning, 
will prompt the prophet, even in his chariot of fire, and in his 
vision of heaven, to bequeath to mankind the mantle of his 
memory ! 

Adieu the silent look : the streaming eye : 

The murmured plaint : the deep heart-rending sigh ; 

In that lone land of deep despair, 
No Sabbath's heavenly light shall rise ; 
No God regard your bitter prayer ; 
Nor Saviour call you to the skies ! 

And in the waveless mirror of his mind, 
He views fleet years of pleasure left behind, 
Since Anna's empire o'er his heart began : 
Since first he called her his before the holy man ! 



II. INTERROGATIVE EXCLAMATORY SENTENCES. 
1. DEFINITE INTERROGATIVE. 

1. Close Definite. 
Examples. 

[What !] did he apprehend dangerous consequences from the 
deliberations of the grave elders of the kirk ! 

Was it a wonder then that I seized my prejudices, and with a 
blush burned them on the altar of my country ! 

Would you really burn the gospel and erase the statutes for the 
dreadful equivalent of the crucifix and the guillotine ! 

Shall it be said, that we will not sacrifice one prejudice on the 
altar of the Union for its preservation, when they offered up thou- 
sands to rear it ! 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 279 

Is tjiere nothing that whispers to that right honorable gentleman, 
that the crisis is too big, that the times are too gigantic to be ruled 
by the little hackneyed and every-day means of ordinary corruption ! 

[How!] Will you suffer your glory to be thus sullied in the 
face of the whole world, and have it said, that a nation, who first 
dedicated a temple in their city to Clemency, had not found any 
in yours ! 

Shall an inferior magistrate, a governor who holds his power of 
the Roman people, in a Roman province, within sight of Italy, 
bind, scourge, torture with fire and red-hot plates of iron, and at 
last put to the infamous death of the cross, a Roman citizen ! 

[What !] Is the legislature, is the rule and government in this 
country reduced to this state, that it shall find no protection in the 
administration of the law of the country against persons associating 
and affiliating for the purpose which they declare here ! 

[Gracious God !] Shall the horrors which surround the informer, 
the ferocity of his countenance and the terrors of his voice, cast 
such a wide and appalling influence that none dare approach and 
save the victim which he marks for ignominy and death ! 

Is it possible that any man can seriously believe the paralyzing 
five millions of such a people as I have been describing, can be a 
benefit to the empire ! Is there any man who deserves the name, 
not of a statesman, but a rational being, who can think it politic to 
rob such a multitude of all the energies of an honorable ambition ! 

Shall neither the cries of innocence expiring in agony, nor the 
tears of pitying spectators, nor the majesty of the Roman com- 
monwealth, nor the fear of the justice of his country, restrain the 
licentious and wanton cruelty of a monster, who, in confidence of his 
riches, strikes at the root of liberty, and sets mankind at defiance ! 

Dost thou not see my baby at my breast, 
That sucks the nurse asleep ! 

Is it heaven's will 
To try the dust it kindles for a day 
With infinite agony ! 

See ye not yonder how the locusts swarm, 
To drink the fountains of your honor up 
And leave your hills a desert ! 

Fragmentary Definite Close. 

Examples. 
[What !] The gentleman from Massachusetts, who assisted by 
his vote to raise the army to twenty-five thousand, alarmed at the 
danger of our liberties from this very army ! 



280 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

[What!] The opposition who in 1798 and 1799, could raise a 
useless army to fight an enemy three thousand miles distant from 
us, alarmed at the existence of one raised for the attack of the 
adjoining provinces of the enemy ! 

[What !] To resign again 
That freedom for whose sake our souls have now 
Engraved themselves in blood ! 

2. Compact Definite. 

The examples under this head, are single compact only. I have not been able to find a 
double compact. I am inclined to believe that the structure of the double compact in its pure 
state is incompatible with interrogative use.* 

Examples. 

[Gracious God !] Is a tyranny of this kind to be borne with, 
where law is said to exist ! 

Would it not be advisable rather to attend to this declared object of 
the war now, than wait until after the Canadian scheme is effected ! 

[What !] Might Rome then have been taken, if these men who 
were at our gates had not wanted courage for the attempt ! Rome 
taken, whilst I was consul ! 

[What ! my lords,] Not cultivate barren land, not encourage the 
manufactories of your county, not relieve the poor of your flock, 
if the church is to be at any expense thereby ! 

Will you sink from manhood, and its nobleness and high estima- 
tion, will you tarnish the lustre of a character already established, 
will you hazard your fortune, will ) r ou close up the avenues of the 
future, which now invites you smilingly to enter, and reap and 
enjoy, when at best you can gain nothing but revenge, and may 
miss even that ! 

3. LOOSE DEFINITE. 

1. Perfect Loose. 
Examples. 
Was it not enough that sorrow robed the happy home in mourn- 
ing : was it not enough that disappointment preyed on its loveliest 

* Since writing the text I have met with two, which I here subjoin. The first will be found 
again under the head of perfect loose, and the second under the miscellaneous head. 

" Am I to find them, not in the pursuit of useful science, not in the encouragement of arts 
and agriculture, not in the relief of an impoverished tenantry, not in the proud march of an 
unsuccessful, but not less sacred patriotism, not in the bright page of warlike immortality, 
dashing its iron crown from guilty greatness, or feeding freedom's laurel with the blood of the 
despot ; but am I to find them amid drunken panders and corrupted slaves, debauching the 
innocence of village-life, and even amid the stews of the tavern, collecting or creating' the ma- 
terials of the brothel !" 

" What ! Must I not only reveal this guilt, must I not only expose this perfidy, must I not 
only brand the infidelity of a wife and a mother ; but must I, amidst the agonies of outraged 
nature, make the brother proof of the sister's prostitution !" 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 281 

prospects : was it not enough that its little inmates cried in vain 
for bread, and heard no answer but the poor father's sigh, and 
drank no sustenance, but the wretched mother's tears : was this a 
time for passion, conscienceless, licentious passion, with its eye of 
lust, its heart of stone, its hand of rapine, to rush into the mourn- 
ful sanctuary of misfortune, casting crime into the cup of wo, 
and rob the parents of their wealth, their child, and rob the child 
of her only charm, her innocence ! 

[Oh !] Does not the God, who is said to be love, shed over 
this attribute of his, its finest illustration, when, while he sits in 
the highest heaven, and pours out his fulness on the whole subor- 
dinate domain of nature, and of providence, he bows a pitying 
regard on the very humblest of his children, and sends his re- 
viving spirit into every heart, and cheers by his presence every 
home, and provides for the wants of every family, and watches 
over every sick-bed, and listens to the complaint of every sufferer ; 
and while, by his wondrous mind, the weight of universal govern- 
ment is borne, oh ! is it not more wondrous and more excellent 
still, that he feels for every sorrow, and has an ear open to every 
prayer ! 

[What !] I exclaimed, as no doubt you are all ready to exclaim, 
Can this be possible ! is it thus that I am to find the educated 
youth of Ireland occupied ! is this the employment of the miser- 
able aristocracy that yet lingers in this devoted country : am I to 
find them, not in the pursuits of useful science, not in the encour- 
agement of arts and agriculture, not in the relief of an impover- 
ished tenantry, not in the proud march of an unsuccessful but not 
less sacred patriotism, not in the bright page of warlike immor- 
tality, dashing its iron crown from guilty greatness, or feeding 
freedom's laurel with the blood of the despot ; but am I to find 
them, amid drunken panders, and corrupted slaves, debauching 
the innocence of village-life, and even amid the stews of the 
tavern, collecting or creating the materials of the brothel ! 
[What !] Were you snarling all before I came, 
Ready to catch each other by the throat ; 
And turn you all your hatred now on me ! 

2. Imperfect Loose. 
Examples. 

[What !] To attribute the sacred sanctions of God and nature 
to the massacre of the Indian's scalping-knife : to the cannibal 
savage, torturing, murdering, roasting and eating, literally, my 
lords, eating the mangled victims of his barbarous battles ! 

[Shall I call you soldiers ?] Soldiers ! who have dared to besiege 
24* 



282 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

the son of your emperor : who have made him a prisoner in 
his own intrenchments ! [Can I call you citizens ?] Citizens ! 
who have trampled under your feet the authority of the senate : 
who have violated the most awful sanctions ; even those which 
hostile states have ever held in respect, the rights of ambassadors 
and the laws of nations ! 

Look upon my boy as though I guessed it : 

Guessed the trial thou wouldst have me make : 

Guessed it instinctively ! 

[What !] I that killed the husband, and his father, 

To take her in her heart's extremest hate : 

With curses in her mouth : tears in her eyes : 

The bleeding witness of her hatred by : 

With God, her conscience, and these bars against me ! 

Is there not a sound, 
As of some watchword, that recalls at night 
All that gave light and wonder to the day, 
In these soft words that breathe of loveliness, 
And summon to the spirit scenes that rose 
Rich on the raptured vision, as the eye 
Hung like a tranced thing above the page 
That Genius had made golden with its glow : 
The page of noble story ; of high towers 
And castled halls, envistaed like the line 
Of heroes and great hearts, that centuries 
Had led before their hearths in dim array : 
Of lake and lawn, and gray and cloudy tree, 
That rocked with bannered foliage to the storm 
Above the walls it shadowed, and whose leaves, 
Rustling in gathered music to the winds, 
Seemed voiced as with the sound of many seas ! 



2. INDEFINITE INTERROGATIVE. 

1. Close Indefinite. 
Examples. 

Where is the man, where is the philosopher, who could so live, 
suffer and die, without weakness and without ostentation ! 

What numberless errors and frauds have crept in among the 
poor deluded people, under cover of the church and the pre- 
tended infallibility of the Pope ! 

Who would not prefer this living tomb in the hearts of his 
countrymen, to the proudest mausoleum that the genius of sculp- 
ture could erect ! 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 283 

What ought to be our emotions, as we meet on this anniversary 
on the spot where the first successful foundations of the great 
American republic were laid ! 

What a well-spring of gratitude to God, of love to man, of 
self- enjoyment, do such persons shut up with impious hands 
against themselves and all whom they influence ! 

How often do we see, in our public gazettes, a pompous display 
of honors to the memory of some veteran patriot, who has been 
suffered to linger out his latter tlays in unregarded penury ! 

How mistaken were all the amatory poets, from Anacreon down- 
ward, who preferred the bloom of the rose and the thrill of the 
nightingale to the saffron hide and dulcet treble of sixty-three! 

How next to impossible does it seem for them to regulate their 
thoughts, words and deeds, and all the influences they are per- 
petually exerting over others, by the purifying love and self-sacri- 
ficing humility of the gospel ! 

Who would not exchange the misgivings and the gloom, that 
overhang this skeptical creed, for the inflexible faith, the ardent 
hope, the holy rejoicing of him who doubts not for a moment the 
future reign of universal peace ! 

Who could have suspected that, under the very roof of virtue, 
in the presence of a venerable and respected matron, and of that 
innocent family, whom she had reared up in the sunshine of her 
example, the most abandoned could have plotted his iniquities ! 

What a cheering pledge does it give of the stability of our insti- 
tutions, that while abroad, the benighted multitude are prostrating 
themselves before the idols which their own hands have fashioned 
into kings, here, in this land of the free, our people are everywhere 
starting up, with one impulse, to follow with their acclamations the 
ascending spirits of the great fathers of the Republic ! 
How like a mountain devil in the heart 
Rules the unreined ambition ! 
What numbers here through odd ambition strive 
To seem the most transported things alive ! 

what passions then, 
What melting sentiments of kindly care 
On the new parents seize ! 
Ah ! what avails the lengthening mead 
By nature's kindest bounty spread 
Along the vale of flowers ! 
How shall I then attempt to sing of Him, 
Who, light himself, in uncreated light 
Invested deep, dwells awfully retired 
From mortal eye, or angel's purer ken ! 



284 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

2. Compact Indefinite* 
Examples. 

How different would have been our lot this day, both as men and 
citizens, had the Revolution failed of success ! 

[0 !] how many favorite schemes of enjoyment would the thought 
of Him and his will put to flight, if faithfully admitted to the inner 
chambers of the mind ! 

How wretched is the situation of thy creatures, when they desert 
Thee, the fountain of life, violate the laws of thy government, and 
wilfully pursue their own destruction ! 

What, what are the hours of a splendid wretch like this, com- 
pared with those that shed their poppies and their roses upon the 
pillows of our peaceful and virtuous patriots ! 

What a dead thing is a clock, with its ponderous embowelments 
of lead and brass, its pert or solemn dumbness of communication, 
compared with the simple altar-like structure, and silent heart- 
language of the old dial ! 

How misapprehended have been the claims of youth, if years and 
wrinkles can thus despoil their conquest, and depopulate the navy 
of its prowess, and beguile the bar of its eloquence ! 

What were the selfish and petty strides of an Alexander, to con- 
quer a little section of a savage world, compared with this generous, 
this magnificent advance towards the emancipation of the entire 
world ! 

What pride did you not feel in that soil, when you lately wel- 
comed the nation's guest, the venerable champion of America, to 
the spot where the first note of struggling freedom was uttered, 
which sounded across the Atlantic, and drew him from all the de- 
lights of life to enlist in our cause ! 

How well would it have been, had he but retraced the fountain 
of that document : had he recalled to mind the virtues it rewarded ; 
the pure train of honors it associated ; the line of spotless ancestry 
it distinguished ; the high ambition its bequests inspired ; the moral 
imitation it imperatively commanded ! 

How could it be otherwise, when, for ages upon ages, invention 
has fatigued itself with expedients for imitation ; when, as I have 
read with horror, in the progress of my legal studies, the homicide 
of a mere Irishman was considered justifiable ; and when, though 
his ignorance was the origin of all his crimes, his education was pro- 
hibited by act of parliament ! 

[Oh !] how happy had it been when he arrived at the bank of the 
river with the ill-fated fugitive, ere yet he had committed her to 

* The single only 's given, for the reason assigned under definite compact. 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 285 

that boat of which, like the fabled bark of Styx, the exile was 
eternal, how happy at that moment, so teeming with misery and 
with shame, if you, my lord, had met him, and could have accosted 
him in the character of that good genius which had abandoned him ! 
What an accession of glory and magnificence does Dr. Herschel 
superadd to it, when, instead of supposing all those suns fixed, and 
the motion confined to their respective planets, he loosens those 
multitudinous suns themselves from their stations, sets them all into 
motion with their splendid retinue of planets and satellites, and 
imagines them, thus attended, to perform a stupendous revolution, 
system above system, around some grander, unknown centre, some- 
where in the boundless abyss of space ! and when, carrying on the 
process, you suppose even that centre itself not stationary, but also 
counterpoised by other masses in the immensity of space, with 
which, attended by their accumulated trains of 

Planets, suns, and adamantine spheres 
Wheeling unshaken through the void immense, 

it maintains harmonious concert, surrounding, in its vast career, 
some other centre still more remote and stupendous, which in its 
turn — ! 

Why do you repeat 

My words, as if you feared to trust your own ! 

How would those rescued thousands bless thy^ name, 

Shouldst thou betray us ! 

How quickly nature falls into revolt, 

When gold becomes her object ! 

[Oh] how comely it is, and how reviving 

To the spirits of just men, long oppressed, 

When God into the hands of their deliverer 

Puts invincible might 

To quell the mighty of the earth ! 

[But oh !] how altered was its sprightlier tone, 
When Cheerfulness, a nymph of healthiest hue, 
Her bow across her shoulder flung, 
Her buskins gemmed with morning dew, 
Blew an inspiring air, that dell and thicket rung ! 

3. Loose Indefinite. 

1. Perfect Loose. 

Examples. 
What noble institutions: what a comprehensive policy: what 
wise equalization of every political advantage ! 




286 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

What prepossession, what blindness, must it be to compare the 
son of Sophronius with the son of Mary ! what an immeasurable 
distance between them ! 

How insensible have Christians and the Christian ministry been to 
the inestimable value of the peace principle : how little have they 
realized its truth, power, beauty ! 

Who can deny that the existence of such a country presents a 
subject for human congratulation : who can deny that its gigantic 
advancement offers a field for the most rational conjecture ! 

What sweetness, what purity, in his manners ! what an affecting 
gracefulness in his instructions ! what sublimity in his maxims ! 
what profound wisdom in his discourses ! what presence of mind, 
what sagacity and propriety in his answers ! how great the com- 
mand over his passions ! 

Who shall say for what purpose a mysterious Providence may 
not have designed her : who shall say that when in its follies and 
its crimes, the old world may have interred all the pride of its 
power, and all the pomp of its civilization, human nature may not 
find its destined renovation in the new ! 

Why is it that to man have been given passions which he cannot 
tame, and which sink him below the brute : and why is it that a 
few ambitious men are permitted by the great Ruler, in the selfish 
pursuit of their own aggrandizement, to scatter in ruin, desolation 
and death, whole kingdoms ! 

How many darling habits would be abandoned, if the whole man 
were brought under the dominion of this imperious visiter ; and how 
many affections would be torn away from the objects on which they 
are now fastened, if God were at all times attended to and regarded 
with that affection which he at all times demands of us ! 

How hard is it to convince Christians of these things ! how hard 
is it to bring them to act on the broad, simple, uncompromising 
precepts of the gospel ! how next to impossible does it seem for 
them to regulate their thoughts, words and deeds, and all the 
influences they are perpetually exerting over others, by the purify- 
ing and self-sacrificing humility of the gospel ! 

What, though in our history, I read of no patriarchs and prophets 
and divine legislators ; of no pillar of cloud by day and of fire by 
night ; not of the terrors of Sinai, or the vision of Pisgah ; not of 
the chariot of fire and the mantle of power ; nor yet of the fiery 
tempest of Sodom or the severed waves of Jordan ! what, though 
in the records of his dealings with us, I read not that he stood and 
measured the earth ; that he beheld and drove asunder the nations ; 
that the mountains saw him and trembled ; that the deep lifted up 
his hands on high ; that the sun and moon stood still in their habi- 
tations ! what, though in the history of the founders of our institu- 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 287 

tions, I read not of cloven tongues like as of fire ; nor of the earth- 
quake at midnight that burst the prison-gates ; nor of the trance 
of Peter, nor the vision of Cornelius, nor the mid-day glory that 
struck Paul with blindness !* 

How beautiful is all this visible world : 
How beautiful in its action and itself ! 

How still he is now ! how fiery hot ! how cold ! 
How terrible ! how lifeless ! 

How fair its lawns and sheltering woods appear : 
How sweet its streamlet murmurs in mine ear ! 

How ghastly the visage of death doth appear ; 

How frightful the thought of the shroud and the bier; 

And the blood-crested worm how vile ! 

How friendly the hand that faith is now lending : 
How benignant her look o'er the pillow while bending : 
How sweet, how assuring, her smile ! 

What affections the violet awakes ! 
What loved little islands, twice seen in their lakes, 

Can the wild water-lily restore ! 
What landscapes I read in the primrose's looks ! 
And what pictures of pebbled and minnowy brooks, 

In the vetches that tangled their shore ! 

2. Imperfect Loose. 
Examples. 

Where, in the compass of human literature, can the fancy be so 
elevated by sublime description : can the heart be so warmed by 
simple, unaffected tenderness ! 

What a pity that the object of that guilty confidence had not 
something of humanity : that as a female, she did not feel for the 
character of her sex : that as a mother she did not mourn over 
the sorrows of a helpless family ! 

How peculiarly and imperiously incumbent, then, is it on us this 
day, in this place, and in this assembly, to speak together concern- 
ing the glory of our ancestors ; to analyze that glory ; and to in- 
quire what it is to deserve, and what it is to disgrace those an- 
cestors ! 

* Each of the three parts of this long perfect loose indefinite, it may he well to say, is a 
compact sentence having only the first word (what) of the first part expressed '; (see Compound 
Compact Indefinite Interrogative Sentences, Note ;) and having an imperfect loose construction 
in the second part. The correlative words, I need scarcely add, are yet — though. 



288 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 






But how much nobler will be our sovereign's boast in having it 
to say that he found law dear, and left it cheap : found it a sealed 
book, and left it a living letter : found it a patrimony of the rich ; 
left it the inheritance of the poor : found it the two-edged sword of 
craft and oppression ; left it the staff of honesty, and the shield of 
innocence ! 

What a proud testimony does it bear to the character of our 
nation, that it is able to make a proper estimate of services like 
these : that while in other countries, the senseless mob fall down 
in stupid admiration, before the bloody wheels of the conqueror, 
even the conqueror by accident, in this, our people rise, with one 
accord, to pay their homage to intellect and virtue ! 

Oh ! how recreating is it to feel that occasions may rise in which 
the soul of man may resume her pretensions : in which she hears 
the voice of nature whispering to her, " I have made man erect 
that he may look up to heaven :" in which even I can look up with 
calm security to the court, and down with the most profound con- 
tempt on the reptile I mean to tread upon ! 

3. INDIRECT INTERROGATIVE. 

Examples. 

Surely, they were indignant at this treatment : surely, the air 
rings with reproaches upon a man who has thus made them stake 
their reputation upon a falsehood, and then gives them little less 
than the lie direct to their assertions ! [No, sir ; nothing of all this 
is heard from our cabinet.] 

Surely, a people with whom we were connected by so many 
natural and adventitious ties, had some claim upon our humanity : 
surely, if our duty required that they and theirs should be sacri- 
ficed to our interests, or our passions, some regret mingled in the 
execution of the purpose ! We postponed the decree of ruin until 
the last moment : we hesitated, we delayed, until longer delay 
was dangerous ! [Alas ! sir, there was nothing of this kind.] 
I see no swords and bucklers on these floors ! 

Sure they lie, 
Who say thou cam'st a secret spy ! 
[Heaven ! are thy thunders idle ? and thou earth, 
That yet endurest his tread,] thou wilt not part 
Beneath him, and deep hide his infamy ! 

[Oh !] the count 
Is pleasant then; and thou wouldst fain forget 
A humble villager, who only boasts 
The treasure of the heart ! 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 289 

III. COMPELLATIVE EXCLAMATORY SENTENCES. 

1. Examples at the beginning. 

Friends, Romans, countrymen' ! lend me your ears. 

Men ! brethren ! and fathers 7 ! hear ye my defence which I now 
make unto you ! 

Friends, countrymen, and lovers 7 ! hear me for my cause, and 
be silent that you may hear. 

Truth 7 ! friendship 7 ! my country 7 ! sacred objects 7 , sentiments 
dear to my heart 7 , accept my last sacrifice. 

Oh thou disconsolate widow' ! robbed, so cruelly robbed, and in 
so short a time, both of a husband and a son 7 ! what must be the 
plenitude of thy sufferings ! 

Friends ! fellow- citizens ! and countrymen ! who have honored 
me with your presence and attention on this occasion, I thank you : 
I thank you from my heart. 

Ye, who have hearts of pity ! ye, who have experienced the 
anguish of dissolving friendship ! who have wept and still weep 
over the mouldering ruins of departed kindred ! — ye can enter into 
the reflection. 

Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets and 
stonest them that are sent unto thee, how often would I have 
gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her 
chickens under her wings, and ye would not ! 

Oh Luxury 7 ! thou curst by Heaven's decree, 
How ill exchanged are things like these for thee ! 

My mother earth ! 
And thou, fresh breaking day ! and you, ye mountains ! 
Why are ye beautiful ? 

Fair star of evening ! splendor of the west ! 
Star of my country ! on the horizon's brink 
Thou hangest. 

Most potent, grave and reverend seigniors ! 
My very noble and approved good masters ! 
That I have ta'en away this old man's daughter, 
Is most true. 

day the fairest sure that ever rose ! 
Period and end of anxious Emma's woes ! 
Sire of her joy, and source of her delight ! 
0, winged with pleasure, take thy happy flight, 
And give each future morn a tincture of thy white. 
25 



290 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

Ye well arrayed ! ye lilies of our land ! 

Ye lilies male ! who neither toil nor spin, 

(As sister lilies might,) if not so wise 

As Solomon, more sumptuous to the sight ! 

Ye delicate ! whom nothing can support, 

Yourselves most insupportable ! for whom 

The winter rose must blow, the sun put on 

A brighter beam in Leo, silky-soft 

Favonius breathe still softer, or be chid, 

And other worlds send odors, sauce and song, 

And robes, and notions, framed in foreign looms ! 

ye Lorenzos of our age ! who deem 

One moment unamused a misery 

Not made for feeble man, who call aloud 

For every bauble drivelled o'er by sense, 

For rattles and conceits of every cast, 

For change of follies and relays of joy, 

To drag your patient through the tedious length 

Of a short winter's day ! — say, sages ! say, 

"Wit's oracles ! say, dreamers of gay dreams ! 

How will you weather an eternal night, 

Where such expedients fail ? 



2. Examples in the middle. 

And he said, Men ! brethren ! and fathers' ! hearken. 

But Peter standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice and 
said unto them, Ye men of Judea' ! and all ye that dwell in Jerusa- 
lem' ! be this known unto you. 

I love thee, mournful, sober-suited night ! 
When the faint moon, yet lingering in her wane, 
And veiled in clouds, with pale uncertain light 
Hanes o'er the waters of the restless main. 



3. Examples at the end. 

By the end is here meant, it will he home in mind, the end of perfect sense : marked 
indifferently by partial or perfect close : the end also of interrogatives and interrogative excla- 
mations, and of their parts, if loose. 

Now that you are gone, who will take your place, servant of 
God, and friend of man ? 

Is this your triumph, this your proud applause, 
Children of truth, and champions of her cause ? 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 291 

Behold, you powers ! 
To whom you have intrusted human kind ! 
See Europe, Afrie, Asia, put in balance, 
And all weighed down by one light, worthless woman ! 

And say, Supernal powers ! who deeply scan 
Heaven's dark decrees, unfathomed yet by man ! 
When shall the world call down to cleanse her shame 
That embryo spirit, yet without a name : 
That friend of nature, whose avenprinp* hands 
Shall burst the Lybian's adamantine bands ? 

How could ye do this, ye slaves and miserable panders of tyranny ? 

On, ye brave, 
Who rush to glory and the grave ! 

Then melt, ye elements ! that formed in vain 
This troubled pulse and visionary brain ! 
Fade, ye wild flowers ! memorials of my doom ! 
And sink, ye stars ! that light me to the tomb ! 

In all the preceding examples of compellatives at the end, except the last three, they ter- 
minate with then- appropriate ending, the bend : in the last three, they yield to the over- 
powering force of the downward slide and the imperative mood. 



IV. SEMI-EXCLAMATORY. 

Examples. 

So thought Palmyra^ : where is she ! 

They will cry in the last accents of despair 7 , oh ! for a Wash- 
ington, an Adams, a Jefferson !* 

Gentlemen, we are at the point of a century from the birth of 
Washington^ ; and what a century it has been ! 

At the end of the very next century, if she proceeds as she 
seems to promise', what a wondrous spectacle may she not ex- 
hibit ! 

When Jesus saw that he was very sorrowful, he said', How 
hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God ! 

And when he came to himself, he said', How many hired ser- 
vants of my father have enough and to spare, and I perish with 
hunger ! 

If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your 
children', how much more shall your heavenly Father give the 
Holy Spirit to them that ask him ! 

* J. e. Oh what would we not give for a Washington, &c 



292 THE BEND, SWEEPS. SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 






Praise and thanksgiving are the most delightful business of heav- 
en x ; and God grant that they may be our greatest delight, our 
most frequent employment, on earth ! 

Jerusalem', Jerusalem', thou that killest the prophets and 
stonest them that are sent unto thee', how often would I have 
gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chick- 
ens under her wings, and ye would not !* 

And the king was much moved, and went up to the chamber 
over the gate, and wept x ; and as he went up, thus he said : my 
son Absalom', my son', my son Absalom' ! would to God I had 
died for thee, Absalom, my son, my son ! 

When the sun rises or sets in the heavens, when autumn pours 
forth its fruits, or when winter returns in its awful forms, happy 
were it for us, did we view the Creator and Preserver of all, con- 
tinually manifesting himself in his various works ! 

When a government forbids its citizens, under pain of death, to 
receive any pension or largess from the hands of foreigners, how 
gentle and easy is that law to those, who, for the sake of their 
fatherland and liberty, would of their own accord, abstain from so 
unworthy an act ! but on the contrary, how harsh and oppressive 
does it appear to those who care for nothing but their selfish 



gains ! 



If for the prosperity of our worldly attempts, for avoiding dan- 
gers that threaten us with pain and damage, for defeating the 
adversaries of our secular quiet, we make our song of victory, how 
much more for the happy progress of our spiritual affairs, for 
escaping those dreadful hazards of utter ruin and endless torture, 
for vanquishing sin and hell, those irreconcilable enemies to our 
everlasting peace, are we obliged to utter triumphant anthems of 
joy and thankfulness ! 

Yes, beauty dwells in all our paths, but sorrow too is there : 
How oft some cloud within us dims the bright, still summer air, 
When Ave carry our sick hearts abroad amidst the joyous things, 
That through the leafy places glance on many-colored wings ! 

Auspicious Hope ! in thy sweet garden grow 
Wreaths for each toil, a charm for every wo : 
Won by their sweets, in nature's languid hour, 
The way-worn pilgrim seeks thy summer bower : 
There, as the wild bee murmurs on the wing, 
What peaceful dreams, thy handmaid spirits bring ! 



* This sentence is not, strictly speaking, semi-exclamatory, but wholly : yet the compilative 
portion being virtually declarative, I include this and other cases of the same kind, under the 
semi-exclamatory head. 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 293 

What viewless forms the iEolian organs play 

And sweep the furrowed lines of anxious thought away ! 

Look then abroad through nature to the range 
Of planets, suns and adamantine spheres, 
Wheeling unshaken through the void immense, 
And speak, man ! does this capacious scene 
With half that kindling majesty dilate 
Thy strong conception, as when Brutus rose 
Refulgent from the stroke of Caesar's fate 
Amid the crowd of patriots, and his arm 
Aloft extending, like eternal Jove 
When guilt brings down the thunder, called aloud 
On Tully's name, and shook his crimson steel, 
- And bade the father of his country, hail ! 
For lo ! the tyrant prostrate on the dust, 
And Rome again is free ! 

Land of our fathers ! though 'tis ours to roam 
A land upon whose bosom thou might'st lie, 
Like infant on its mother's ; though 'tis ours 
To gaze upon a nobler heritage 
Than thou couldst e'er unshadow to thy sons ; 
Though ours to linger upon fount and sky, 
Wilder, and peopled with great spirits who 
Walk with a deeper majesty than thine ; 
Yet, as our fatherland, oh who shall tell 
The lone mysterious energy which calls 
Upon our sinking spirits to walk forth 
Amid thy wood and mount, where every hill 
Is eloquent with beauty, and the tale 
And song of centuries, the cloudless years 
When fairies walked thy valleys, and the turf 
Rung to their tiny footsteps, and quick flowers 
Sprang with the lifting grass on which they trode : 
When all the landscape murmured to its rills, 
And Joy with Hope slept in its leafy bowers! 

Miscellaneous Examples of Exclamatory Sentences. 

Blush, then, ministers and warriors of imperial France, who have 
deluded your nation by pretensions to a disinterested regard for its 
liberties and rights ! disgorge the riches extorted from your fellow- 
citizens, and the spoils amassed from confiscation and blood ! re- 
store to impoverished nations the price paid by them for the 
privilege of slavery, and now appropriated to the refinements of 
luxury and corruption ! approach the tomb of Hamilton, and com- 

25* 



294 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 






pare the insignificance of your gorgeous palaces with the awful 
majesty of this tenement of clay ! 

If charters are not deemed sacred, how miserably precarious is 
every thing founded upon them ! 

But I forbear, and come reluctantly to the transactions of that 
dismal night, when in such quick succession we felt the extremes 
of grief, astonishment and rage : when heaven in anger, for a dread- 
ful moment, suffered hell to take the reins : when Satan with his 
chosen band opened the sluices of New England's blood, and sacrile- 
giously polluted our land with the dead bodies of her guiltless sons! 

May that magnificence of spirit, which scorns the low pursuits 
of malice, may that generous compassion, which often preserves 
from ruin even a guilty villain, forever actuate the noble bosoms 
of Americans ! 

Tell me, ye bloody butchers ! ye villains high and low ! ye 
wretches who contrived, as well as ye who executed the inhuman 
deed ! do you not feel the goads and stings of conscious guilt 
pierce through your savage bosoms ! 

Unhappy Monk ! cut off, in the gay morn of manhood, from all 
the joys which sweeten life : doomed to drag on a pitiful existence, 
without even a hope to taste the pleasures of returning health ! 

Ye dark, designing knaves ! ye murderers ! parricides ! how dare 
you tread upon the earth, which has drank in the blood of slaugh- 
tered innocents, shed by your hands : how dare you breathe that 
air which wafted to the ear of heaven the groans of those who fell 
a sacrifice to yourjiccursed ambition ! But if the laboring earth 
doth not expand her jaws, if the air you breathe is not commis- 
sioned to be the minister of death, yet hear it and tremble ! The 
eye of heaven penetrates the darkest chambers of the soul : traces 
the leading clue through all the labyrinths which your industrious 
folly has devised ; and you, however you may have screened 
yourselves from human eyes, must be arraigned, must lift your 
hands, red with the blood of those whose death you have procured, 
at the tremendous bar of God ! 

May this Almighty Being graciously preside in all our councils : 
may he direct us to such measures as he himself shall approve, 
and be pleased to bless: may we ever be a people favored of God : 
may our land be a land of liberty, the seat of virtue, the asylum 
of the oppressed, a name and a praise in the whole earth, until the 
last shock of time shall bury the empires of the world in one com- 
mon undistinguished ruin ! 

The voice of your father's blood cries to you from the ground, 
My sons, scorn to be slaves ! In vain we met the frowns of ty- 
rants ; in vain we crossed the boisterous ocean, found a new world, 
and prepared it for the happy residence of liberty ; in vain we 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 295 

toiled ; in vain we fought ; we bled in vain ; if you, our offspring, 
want valor to repel the assaults of her invaders ! 

Say, fellow-citizens ! what dreadful thought now swells your 
heaving bosoms ! You fly to arms : sharp indignation flashes from 
each eye : revenge gnashes her iron teeth : death grins a hideous 
smile, secure to drench his greedy jaws in human gore ; whilst 
hovering furies darken all the air ! 

For what task more delightful than to contemplate the success- 
ful struggles of virtue : to see it, at one moment, panting under the 
grasp of oppression, and rising in the next with renewed strength, 
as if, like the giant son of earth, she had acquired vigor from the fall : 
to see hope and disappointment, plenty and want, defeats and vic- 
tories, following each other in rapid succession, and contributing, 
like light and shade, to the embellishment of the piece ! — What 
more soothing to the soft and delicate feelings of humanity, than to 
wander, with folded arms and slow and pensive step, amidst the 
graves of departed heroes, to indulge the mingled emotions of grief 
and admiration : at one moment giving way to private sorrow, and 
lamenting the loss of a friend, a relation, a brother ; in the next, 
glowing with patriot warmth, gazing with ardor on their wounds, 
and invoking their spirits, while we ask Heaven to inspire us with 
equal fortitude ! 

Strange, unaccountable paradox ! How much more rational 
would it be to argue that the natural enemy of the privileges of 
freemen is he who is robbed of them himself ! 

How many opportunities do foreign attachments afford, to tamper 
with domestic factions : to practise the arts of seduction : to mis- 
lead public opinion : to influence or awe the public councils ! 

How" novel, how grand the spectacle ! 

Commencing his administration, what heart is not charmed with 
the recollection of the pure and wise principles announced by him- 
self as the basis of his political life ! 

No matter how we may have graduated in the scale of nations ; 
no matter with what wreath we may have been adorned, or what 
blessings we may have been denied ; no matter what may have 
been our feuds, our follies or our misfortunes ; it has at least been 
universally conceded, that our hearths were the home of the domes- 
tic virtues ; and that love, honor and conjugal fidelity, were the 
dear and indisputable deities of our household ! 

It is without remedy : it is without antidote : it is without evasion ! 

Under such a visitation, how dreadful would be the destiny of 
the virtuous and the good, if the providence of our constitution had 
not given you the power, as, I trust, you will have the principle, to 
bruise the head of the serpent and crumble the altar of its idolatry ! 

But I do ask you, of what materials must the man be composed, 



296 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

who could thus debase the national liberality ! What ! was the re- 
compense of that lofty heroism which has almost appropriated to the 
British navy the monopoly of maritime renown, was that grateful 
offering which a weeping country pours into the lap of its patriot's 
widow, and into the cradle of its warrior's orphans, was that gen- 
erous consolation with which a nation's gratitude cheers the last 
moments of her dying hero, by the portraiture of his children sus- 
tained and ennobled by the legacy of his achievements, to be thus 
deliberately perverted into the bribe of a base, reluctant, unnat- 
ural prostitution ! Oh ! I know of nothing to parallel the self- 
abasement of such a deed, except the audacity that requires an 
honorable jury to abet it ! 

Gracious God ! is it not enough to turn mercy herself into an 
executioner ! You convict for murder ; here is the hand that 
murdered innocence : you convict for treason ; here is the vilest 
disloyalty to friendship : you convict for robbery ; here is one who 
plundered virtue of her dearest jewel, and dissolved it even in the 
bowl of that hospitality held out to him ! 

What ! Must I not only reveal this guilt, must I not only expose 
this perfidy, must I not only brand the infidelity of a wife and a 
mother ; but must I, amid the agonies of outraged nature, make 
the brother proof of the sister's prostitution ! 

Happy was it for Ireland that she had recovered her rights by 
victory, not stained by blood : not a victory bathed in the tears of 
a mother, a sister, or a wife : not a victory hanging over the grave 
of a Warren or a Montgomery, and uncertain whether to triumph 
in what she had gained, or to mourn over what she had lost ! 

Must we then realize that Hamilton is no more : must the sod, 
not yet cemented on the tomb of Washington, still moist with our 
tears, be so soon disturbed to admit the beloved companion of 
Washington; the partner of his dangers; the object of his confi- 
dence ; the disciple who leaned upon his bosom ! Insatiable 
Death ! will not the heroes and statesmen whom mad ambition has 
sent from the crimsoned fields of Europe suffice to people thy 
dreary dominions ! 

And in our infant country, how small was the remnant of our 
revolutionary heroes which had been spared from thy fatal grasp ! 
Could not our Warren, our Montgomery, our Mercer, our Greene, 
our Washington appease thy vengeance for a few short years ; 
shall none of our early patriots be permitted to behold the per- 
fection of their own work in the stability of our government and the 
maturity of our institutions ; or* hast thou predetermined, dread 

* Or disjunctive. This is the only instance of double interrogative exclamation with which 
I have met ; and I have met with this too late for insertion in its proper place. It is deli vexed, 
I need scarcely say, like a double interrogative sentence. 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 297 

King of Terrors ! to blast the world's best hope, and, by depriving 
us of all the conductors of our glorious Revolution, compel us to 
bury our liberties in their tombs ! Hamilton ! great would be 
the relief of my mind, were I permitted to exchange the arduous 
duty of attempting to portray the varied excellence of thy charac- 
ter, for the privilege of venting the deep and unavailing sorrow 
which swells my bosom at the remembrance of the gentleness of 
thy nature : of thy splendid talents and placid virtues ! 

I tremble to think that I am called to attack, from this place, a 
crime, the very idea of which almost freezes one with horror : a 
crime, too, which exists among the polite and polished orders of 
society ; and which is accompanied with every aggravation : com- 
mitted with cool deliberation, and openly in the face of day ! 

And was there, my God ! no other sacrifice valuable enough : 
would the cry of no other blood reach the place of retribution and 
wake justice, dozing over her awful seat ! 

Had it not had its advocates, had not a strange preponderance 
of opinion been in favor of it, never, lamented Hamilton ! hadst 
thou thus fallen in the midst of thy days, and before thou hadst 
reached the zenith of thy glory ! 

that I possessed the talent of eulogy, and that I might be per- 
mitted to indulge the tenderness of friendship, in paying the last 
tribute to his memory ! that I were capable of placing this 
great man before you.* 

Approach, and behold, while I lift from his sepulchre its cover- 
ing ! Ye admirers 'of his greatness ! ye emulous of his talents and 
his fame ! approach and behold him now ! How pale ! how silent ! 
No martial bands admire the adroitness of his movements ; no fas- 
cinated throng weep, and melt, and tremble at his eloquence ! 
Amazing change ! a shroud, a coffin, a narrow subterranean dwel- 
ling — this is all that now remains of Hamilton ! 

Where would be the spirit, where the courage of their slain fa- 
thers ? Snatched and gone from ignoble sons ! What should 
we answer to the children we leave behind ; who will take their 
praise or their reproach, from the conduct of their sires, and those 
sires republicans ; who, rejecting from the train of their succession 
the perishing honors of a riband or a badge, are more nobly in- 
spired to transmit the unfading distinctions that spring from the 
resolute discharge of all the patriot's high duties ! 

Impious as well as insulting ! The leopard cannot change his 
spots or the Ethiopian his skin, but we, we, are to put off our bod- 
ies and become unlike ourselves as the price of our safety ! 

When it happens that some of them are surrendered up, on ex- 

* Each of these exclamations is the first part of a single compact, beginning with if: the 
second part beginning with then being understood. If it was so that, <$-c, then,&c. 



298 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

amination and allowance of the proofs, it is not unusual to advert to 
it as an indication of British justice and generosity ! The very act, 
which, to an abstract judgment, should be taken as stamping a seal 
upon the outrage by the acknowledgment it implies from themselves 
of the atrocity, is converted into the medium of homage and praise ! 
Inverted patriotism : drooping, downcast honor ! to derive a pleas- 
urable sensation from the insulting confession of a crime ! 

They did not know that the angel of the Lord would go forth 
with them, and smite the invaders of their sanctuary : they did not 
know that generation after generation, would, on this day, rise up 
and call them blessed ; that the sleeping quarry would leap forth 
to pay them voiceless homage ; that their names would be handed 
down, from father to son, the penman's theme and the poet's inspi- 
ration ; challenging, through countless years, the jubilant praises of 
an emancipated people, and the plaudits of an admiring world ! 
no ! they knew, only, that the arm which should protect, was op- 
pressing them ; and they shook it off: that the chalice presented 
to their lips was a poisoned one ; and they dashed it away ! 

Sole survivor of an assembly of as great men as the world has 
witnessed, in a transaction, one of the most important that history 
records; what thoughts, what interesting reflections must fill his 
elevated and devout soul ! If he dwell on the past, how touching 
its recollections : if he survey the present, how happy ; how joy- 
ous ; how full of the fruition of that hope, w T hich his ardent patri- 
otism indulged : if he glance at the future, how does the prospect 
of his country's advancement almost bewilder his weakened concep- 
tion ! Fortunate, distinguished patriot ! interesting relic of the past ! 

Alas ! those attic days are gone : that sparkling eye is quenched : 
that voice of pure and delicate affection, which ran with such bril- 
liancy and effect through the whole compass of colloquial music, 
now bright with wit, now melting in tenderness, is hushed forever 
in the grave ! 

Thus lived and thus died our sainted Patriots ! May their spir- 
its still continue to hover over their countrymen, inspire their coun- 
cils, and guide them in the same virtuous and noble path ; and may 
that God, in whose hands are the issues of all things, confirm and 
perpetuate, to us, the inestimable boon which through their agency, 
he has bestowed, and make our Columbia the bright example for 
all the struggling sons of liberty around the globe ! 

Great Heaven ! how frail thy creature man is made : 
How by himself insensibly betrayed ! 

How blest the solitary's lot ; 

Who all-forgetting, all-forgot, 

Within his humble cell, 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 299 

The cavern wild with tangling roots, 
Sits o'er his newly-gathered fruits, 
Beside his crystal well ! 

Our portion is not large, indeed, 
But then how little do we need ! 

Famine, plague, war, and an unnumbered throng 
Of guilt-avenging ills, to man belong ; 
What black, what ceaseless cares besiege our state : 
What strokes we feel from fancy and from fate ! 

happy plains, remote from war's alarms, 
And all the ravages of hostile arms ; 
And happy shepherds, who, secure from fear, 
On open downs preserve your fleecy care ; 
Whose spacious barns groan with increasing store, 
And whirling flails disjoint the creaking floor ! 

How I dreamt 
Of things impossible ; 
Of joys perpetual in perpetual change ; 
Of stable pleasures on the tossing wave ; 
Eternal sunshine in the storms of life : 
How richly were my noontide trances hung 
With gorgeous tapestries of pictured joys ; 
Joy behind joy, in endless perspective ! 

Life ! ask my life ! confess ! record myself 

A villain for the privilege to breathe, 

And carry up and down this cursed city 

A discontented and repining spirit, 

Burdensome to itself, a few years longer, 

To lose it, may be at last, in a lewd quarrel 

For some new friend, treacherous and false as thou art ! 

No. 

Oh Heaven ! that one might read the book of fate, 

And see the revolution of the times 

Make mountains level and the continent, 

Weary of solid firmness, melt itself 

Into the sea ; and, other times, to see 

The beachy girdle of the ocean 

Too wide for Neptune's hips : how chances mock, 

And changes fill the cup of alteration 

With divers liquors ! 

Ha! again. 
Said he, young Harry Percy's spur was cold : 



300 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

Of hotspur, coldspur : that rebellion 
Had met ill luck ! 

Now bind my brows with iron, and approach 
The raggedest hour that time and spite dare bring, 
To frown upon the enraged Northumberland ; 
Let heaven kiss earth ; now let not nature's hand 
Keep the wild flood confined ; let order die ; 
And let this world no longer be a stage, 
To feed contention in a lingering act, 
But let one spirit of the first-born Cain 
Reign in all bosoms ; that, each heart being set 
On blood) 7 courses, the rude scene may end, 
And darkness be the burier of the dead ! 

Oh, yet, for God's sake, go not to these wars ! 
[The time was, father, that you broke your word, 
When you were more endeared to it than now.] 

What ! is my lord of Winchester installed, 
And called unto a cardinal's degree ! 

She is beholden to thee, gentle youth ! 
Alas ! poor lady ! desolate and left ! 

Ha ! majesty ! how high thy glory towers 
When the rich blood of kings is set on fire ! 

What ! The kind Ismena 
That nursed me : watched my sickness ! 

What ! Love my foe : 
Love one descended from a race of tyrants, 
Whose blood yet reeks on my avenging sword ! 

Hippolitus !* 
Am I alive or dead ! Is this Elysium ! 
'Tis he ! 'tis all Hippolitus ! 

Why look you so upon me ? 
I am but sorry, not afeared ! delayed, 
But nothing altered ! 

'Would thou hadst less deserved ; 
That the proportion both of thanks and payment 
Might have been mine ! 

/ __^__ 

* This is not compellative, but a simple declarative exclamation ; and should therefore ba 
delivered with perfect close. 



THE BEND, SWEEPS. SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 301 



THE MIXED SENTENCE, CIRCUMSTANCE AND PARENTHESIS. 

I. THE MIXED SENTENCE. 

Rule XX. The mixed sentence is delivered in conformity to the 
rules which govern the delivery of the particular sentences of which 
it is composed. 

As the student is now supposed to be fully acquainted with every sentence in the English 
language, with its peculiar structure and the law of its delivery, and consequently with all the 
elements which, in combination, form the mixed sentence, I will not trouble him in this place 
with examples, but simply refer him to the Classification, where a sufficient number for illus- 
tration and practice will be found. 

II. THE CIRCUMSTANCE. 

Rule XXI. At the beginning and in the middle of declarative, 
or declarative exclamatory sentences without partial close, and of 
the parts of sentences ending with partial close, the circumstance 
always terminates with the bend ; and at the end of such sentences 
and parts of sentences, it terminates with partial or perfect close. 
At the beginning, in the middle, and at the end of interrogative or 
interrogative exclamatory sentences, it conforms to the slide. 

A particular species of circumstance, of which " said he," " cried James," " answered Cor- 
nelius," &c, though not forming a part of the question which precedes them, and usually 
having the interrogative or exclamatory point between them and the question, is nevertheless 
delivered with a continuation of the same slide. For examples of this and of other circum- 
stances, for illustration and practice, I refer the student, as above, to the Classification. 

III. THE PARENTHESIS. 

Rule XXII. If the parenthesis follows a part of a sentence 
making imperfect sense, it terminates with the bend : if it follows 
partial or perfect close, that is to say, if it is placed between parts 
of a sentence making perfect loose, or between two sentences, it 
ends with the partial or perfect close. 

With regard to declarative parenthetical sentences, this rule, I believe, holds universally 
true :* interrogatives modify it somewhat. After imperfect sense, the rising slide being nearly 
allied to the bend, and having but a slight tendency to break the connection, is pretty fully 
developed ; but the falling slide, like the inferior sweep of emphasis, must return to the level 
of the sentence, or it will sever the connection altogether, like partial or perfect close, to which 
it is nearly related. After perfect sense, or partial and perfect close, the slides are unchecked. 

Apart from the termination, the parenthesis should be delivered according to the nature of 
the sentence of which it consists. 

To distinguish the parenthesis from the including sentence, it should, in general, be read 
with less force, or a lower tone of voice. I say in general, because the reverse of this is some- 
times necessary ; as when the parenthesis consists of a rapid and vehement question, or start- 
ling exclamation. The main thing is, to mark the parenthesis as such ; and as doing this 
gracefully is a necessary qualification of the good reader or speaker, I subjoin copious exam- 
ples for practice : including those already adduced in the Classification. 

Examples. 

We hold, you know, (and rightly too,) that all government is, or 
ought to be made and managed for the benefit of the people. 

* Except in cases in which writers have violated propriety in composition. 

26 



302 THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 

And there will I nourish thee, (for yet there are five years of 
famine,) lest thou and thy household, and all that thou hast come 
to poverty. 

He had not been there, (as I was informed by those who lived 
in his neighborhood, and who were acquainted with him.) since the 
year 1796. 

Should liberty continue to be abused in this country, as it has 
been for some time past, (and though demagogues may not admit, 
yet sensible and observing men will not deny that it has been,) the 
people will seek relief in despotism or in emigration. 

The power of such characters in nature, says Mr. Whately, 
(from whom I am happy to borrow the following observations, not 
only from the beauty of their expression, but from their singular 
coincidence in the illustration of the fact I have been endeavoring 
to establish,) the power of such characters is not confined to the 
ideas which the objects themselves immediately suggest. 

No such claimant being found, (I mean none who knew the con- 
tents ; for many declared that they expected just such a packet, 
and believed it to be their property,) Mr. Blenner very coolly 
resolved to apply the money to his own use. 

I had often heard of my friend S — 's charming place, his excel- 
lent house, his every thing, in short, that great wealth (for he is a 
man of very large estate) could bestow, and taste, (for everybody 
talked of his and Mrs. L — 's taste,) could adorn. I pictured his 
groves, his lawns, and his waterfalls, with somewhat of that enthu- 
siasm for country scenery which you seem to feel ; and I thought 
of his daughters, (two elegant girls, whom I had just seen for a 
few moments in the way from New York,) as the w r ood-nymphs of 
the scene. 

On the other hand, by what I had almost called an accidental 
circumstance, but one which might rather to be considered as a 
leading incident in the great train of events connected with the 
establishment of constitutional freedom in this country, it came to 
pass, that nearly all the colonies (founded as they were on the 
charters granted to corporate institutions in England, which had 
for their object the pursuit of the branches of trade pertinent to a 
new plantation,) adopted a regular representative system. 

That w^hich was from the beginning, which we have heard, which 
we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our 
hands have handled of the word of life ; (for the life w r as mani- 
fested, and w r e have seen it, and bear witness, and show unto you 
that eternal life which was with the Father, and was manifested 
unto us ;) that which we have seen and heard, declare we unto you, 
that ye also may have fellowship with us. 

Know ye not, brethren, (for I speak to them that know the 



THE BEND, SWEEPS, SLIDES AND CLOSES APPLIED. 303 

law,) how that the law hath dominion over a man as long as he 
liveth ? 

Is it, (permit me to ask,) because this affords no immediate 
profit, that you refuse to pursue it ? 

Could he possibly have committed this crime, (I am sure he 
could not,) which, as all will acknowledge, is at variance with the 
character he has borne, and the whole tenor of his life ? 

And what now, (I ask you,) is to save us from the abuse of all 
this power ? What is to prevent our free democracy (especially 
when our country becomes crowded with people, as it will be by- 
and-by, even though our woods and prairies, and our cities are 
choked with men, almost stifling each other with their hot breath,) 
from following its natural bent, and launching us all, or those who 
come after us, in a wild and lawless anarchy V 

She had managed this matter so well, (oh ! she was the most 
artful of women !) that my father's heart was gone before I sus- 
pected it was in danger. 

It was represented by an analogy, (oh ! how inadequate !) which 
was borrowed from the religion of paganism. 

Shall we continue (alas ! that I should be constrained to ask the 
question !) in a course so dangerous to health, so enfeebling to 
mind, so destructive to character ? 

I wished (why should I deny it ?) that it had been my case in- 
stead of my sister's. 

Him I am to leave here, being first cleansed of the deep dye 
with which, by my art, (and what art is it I am not familiar with ?) 
I have stained his skin to the darkest hue of the African. 

Sir, to borrow the words of one of your own poets, whose 
academic sojourn was in the next college to that in which we are 
now assembled, (and in what language but that of Milton, can I 
hope to do justice to Bacon and Newton ?) if their star should 
ever for a period go down, it must be to rise again with new 
splendor. 

Then went the captain with the officers and brought them with- 
out violence ; (for they feared the people, lest they should have 
been stoned ;) and when they had brought them, they set them 
before the council. 

Let the bishop be one that ruleth well his own house : having 
his children in subjection : (for if a man know not how to rule his 
own house, how shall he take care of the Church of God ?) not a 
novice, lest being lifted up with pride, he fall into condemnation of 
the devil. 

I will therefore chastise him and release him. (For of necessity, 
he must release one of them at the feast.) And they cried out all 
at once : saying, Away with this man and release unto us Barab- 



304 EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 

bas ; (who for a certain sedition made in the city, and for murder, 
was cast into prison.) 

Brethren ! be ye followers together of me, and mark them which 
walk so, as ye have us for an example. (For many walk, of whom 
I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they 
are the enemies of the cross of Christ ; whose end is destruction ; 
whose god is their belly ; and whose glory is in their shame : who 
mind earthly things.) For our conversation is in heaven. 

God hath a special indignation against pride above all other 
sins ; and he will cross our endeavors, not because they are evil, 
(what hurt could there be in laying one brick upon another ; or in 
rearing a Babel more than any other edifice f) but because this 
business is proudly undertaken. 

Let me earnestly impress it on every one who wishes to be 
saved, (and if we do not, why approach the sanctuary of God : 
why hear the words of this book : why lift up a prayer to the 
throne of heaven in the name of the great Redeemer ?) if you 
wish to be saved, go not into such society ; or if you enter it un- 
awares, remain not in it. 



CHAPTER VII. 



EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS, OR SENTENCES IN 
CONTINUOUS DISCOURSE. 

In the portion of this work on which we are about to enter, 
the student is gradually left, after the first three sections, to 
which I have appended copious notes, to his own resources in the 
analysis of sentential structure, and the application of preceding 
principles and rules. If, as is here supposed, he has carefully 
committed to memory and thoroughly digested those principles 
and rules, he will meet with no difficulty on the succeeding pages, 
which he cannot easily surmount : without such preliminary prep- 
aration he will probably stumble over the simplest passages ; 
and his progress, if he make any progress, will be slow, embar- 
rassed and extremely discouraging. As elsewhere, the diligent 
student will find here his merited reward : the indolent and heed- 
less, his appropriate punishment. 

In the notes succeedino- each of the first three sections I have 



EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 305 

indicated the manner in which exercises in reading, or rehearsals 
before speaking, should be conducted : barely indicated ; for I 
have confined my attention to structure, emphasis and the rules 
of delivery. Of articulation, accent, and much under the head of 
modulation, especially key, force and rate, I have said nothing. 
What I have omitted will be supplied, I suppose, by the student 
himself, or his intelligent instructor : leaving nothing, in short, 
hitherto advanced, without pertinent use. For a distinct enumer- 
ation of the different topics to which attention should be given 
at a recitation, I refer to the beginning of Ch. Vlth. 



SEC. I. HAMLET'S INSTRUCTION TO THE PLAYERS. 

1 Speak the speech, I pray you', as I pronounced it to you v : 
trippingly on the tongue N ; but if you mouth it, as many of our 

2 players do', I had as lief the town-crier spake my lines. Nor 
do not saw the air too much with your hand thus, but use 
all gently^; for in the very torrent, tempest, and, (as I may 
say,) whirlwind of your passion', you must acquire, and beget 

3 a temperance, that may give it smoothness". 0, it offends me to 
the soul, to hear a robustious periwig-pated fellow tear a pas- 
sion to tatters, to very rags, to split the ears of the ground- 
lings v ; who, for the most part, are capable of nothing but inex- 

4 plicable dumb shows, and noise. I would have such a fellow 

5 whipped for o'erdoing Termagant : it out-herods Herod. Pray 

6 you, avoid it. Be not too tame neither', but let your own 

7 discretion be your tutor. Suit the action to the word'; the 
word to the action" : with this special observance'" : that you o'er- 
step not the modesty of nature^; for any thing so over-done is 
from the purpose oi playing"; whose end, both at the first, and 
now, was, and is, to hold, as 'twere, the mirror up to nature^ : 
to show virtue her own /eating; scorn her own image"; and 

8 the very age and body of the time', his form, and pressure. Now 
this, overdone, or come tardy off', though it make the unskilful 
laugh, cannot but make the judicious grieve^; the censure of 
which one, must, in your allowance, o'erweigh a whole theatre 

9 of others. 0, there be players, that I have seen play, and heard 
others praise, and that highly, (not to speak it profanely,) that, 
neither having the accent of Christians, nor the gait of Chris- 
tian, pagan, or man, have so strutted and bellowed, that I have 
thought some of nature's journeymen had made men, and not 
made them well" : they imitated humanity so abominably. 

26* 



306 EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 

HAMLET'S INSTRUCTION TO THE PLAYERS, RHETORICALLY PARSED. 
1st Sentence. 

Question 1. What is the nature of this sentence f Answer. It is a compound declarative 
perfect loose sentence with two parts. 

Q. 2. What do you mean by a compound sentence S" A. A sentence which contains 
either a single proposition, having two or more subjects and verbs, or two or more propositions, 
having indifferently one subject and verb, or two or more subjects and verbs. (See Classifica- 
tion : Compound Sent.) 

Q. 3. What, by a declarative sentence t A. A sentence which states or declares some- 
thing in some one of the various relations of time, &c. (See Classif. Decl. Sent.) 

Q. 4. What, by a loose sentence 5 A. A sentence which contains two or more distinct 
though related propositions, connected by conjunctions, adverbs or relative pronouns expressed 
or understood. (See Classif. Loose Sent.) 

Q. 5. What, by a perfect loose I A. A sentence which has the construction of all its 
parts complete. (See Classif. ibid.) 

Q. 6. You say this perfect loose sentence consists of two parts: what is the nature of the 
sentence in the lirst part 5 A. It is a compound declarative imperfect loose, with two sub- 
parts : the lirst ending with you, and the second with tongue. 

Q. 7. What do you mean by an imperfect loose \ A. A loose sentence which has its first 
part complete, but the succeeding part or parts fragmentary: requiring a portion of the first 
part (understood) to complete their construction. (See C.assif.,as above.) 

Q. 8. What is the nature of the sub-parts J A. The first ending with you, is a declarative 
single compact of the second form. 

Q. 9. What do you mean by a compact sentence ? A. A sentence always consisting of 
two parts: each of which begins with a word which relates to another word at the beginning 
of the other. (See Classif. Compact Sent.) 

Q. 10. \\ nat, by the second form ? A. Compact sentences have these correlative words, 
sometimes both expressed; sometimes, only o:io of them; and sometimes both are under- 
stood. If both are expressed, the compact belongs to the first form : if only one, to the second : 
if neither is expressed, to the third. (See Classif., as above.) 

Q. 11. What is the nature of the second sub-part 5 A. It is a simple declarative sentence : 
having the clause, sprak the speech, understood before trippingly. 

Q. 12. What is a simple sentence S A. A sentence having" but one subject and one verb. 
(See Classif. Simple Sent.) 

Q. 13. We have now analyzed one of the pails of the perfect loose sentence ; what is the 
nature of the second '.' A. It is a mixed sentence. 

Q. 14. What do you mean by a mixed sentence ? A. A sentence consisting of two or 
more sentences of the same kind, or of different kinds combined. (See Classif. J\Iixed Sent.) 

Q. 15. Are the sentences combined here of the same, or different species A. Of the 
same: both being single compacts of the second form: tiie greater comprehending, having 
the relative words if— then, and the less comprehended, the relative words so — as. 

Q. 16. What is the proper punctuation between the principal parts of this sentence ; that 
is, before but S A. The semicolon; because the connective b ut is expressed. (See Punctua- 
tion, Semicolon.) 

Q. 17. What is the proper punctuation between the sub-parts of the first principal part ; 
that is, before trippingly \ A. The colon ; because the connective, namely ox that is, is under- 
stood. 

Q. 18. In the first sub-part you have the clause, / pray you : what is the rhetorical name 
of it f A. A circumstance. 

Q. 19. What is the nature of a circumstance ? A. It is a part of a sentence necessary to 
the sense, but not the construction. (See Classif. Circumstance.) 

Q. 20. Is it necessary to the sense in this place '? A. Yes ; for if it were not inserted, the 
request of Hamlet would be a command. 

Q. 21. How is a circumstance always punctuated ? A. At the beginning of perfect sense 
it is always followed, in the middle, preceded and followed, and at the end preceded, by a 
comma : at the end, it is of course followed by one of the pauses of perfect sense. (See Classify 
as above.) 

Q. 22. What is the proper punctuation of the second principal part ? A. As it makes 
imperfect sense until completed, the comma only can be inserted, as in the text, between the 
parts of the less and greater compacts. (See Punctuation, Comma, and Classif. Sing. Compact. ) 

Q. 23. What is meant by the general delivery of a sentence ? A. Its delivery apart from 
the consideration of emphasis ; that is, its characteristic delivery. 

Q. 24. What is the general delivery of the whole perfect loose sentence ? A. (See Rule IX.) 

Q. 25. What, of the first part, or imperfect loose sentence s A. (See Ibid.) 

Q. 26. What, of the second part, or mixed sentence I A. (See Rule XX.) 

Q. 27. What, of the circumstance in the first part ? A. (See Rule XXI.) 

Q. 28. Can you tell me which are the emphatic words ? A. Pronounced, mouth, many, 
town-crier. 

Q. 29. What is the effect of emphasis on each ? A. On pronounced and town-crier, being 
in the same short division of sense with close, the lower sweep is converted into the falling 
slide to close : (See Emph., Sec. II. 2. 5 :) on mouth and many, emphasis has a full develop- 



EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 307 

merit of both sweeps : there being ample room for it between these words and the pause on 
either hand. (See Empk., Sec. II. 1.) 
30. Now deliver the sentence. 

2d Sentence. 

Q. 1. What kind of sentence is this ? A. Before I answer this question, I must make an 
observation or two on the use of nor and for in this place. 

Nor is used here precisely as if preceded by another negative member of the same sentence, 
beginning with needier or not : as if, instead of the sentence already analyzed, the author had 
written as follows : "Neither speak the speech differently from the manner in which I pro- 
nounced it, nor saw the ah too much with your hand thus ; but," &c, or as follows : " Do 
not speak the speech differently from the manner I pronounced it, nor saw the ah with your 
hand thus ; but," &c. 

Should we adopt the first construction, the whole sentence will be a compound declarative 
perfect loose, consisting of three pails : the first teiminating with thus, and comprising a sin- 
gle compact with neither — nor, for correlative words ; the second, a simple declarative ; and 
the third a compound declarative close. Should we adopt the second construction, the whole 
sentence will be a double compact with the first and third part expressed : the first or nega- 
tive part comprising two members, and the thud, forming a perfect loose, consisting of two 
parts. 

The word for is here used as the equivalent of and. In its proper force, it should introduce a 
reason for something going before ; but this is not the case : it simply repeats the preceding 
sentiment in another form. The propriety of substituting and, will readily be perceived by 
employing it. I should add, perhaps, that if for was here used in its proper sense, that is, as 
the equivalent of because, the whole sentence would be a double compact with three of its 
pails expressed : the first, third and fourth ; that is, the negative with two members, the 
affirmative opposed to the negative, and the reason for this affirmative. 

On the whole, of the two methods of construction noticed above, I prefer the second ; 
namely, that which makes the whole sentence a declarative double compact with the first and 
third pail expressed. 

Q. 2. What is a double compact sentence ? A. It is a sentence consisting of two single 
compacts: each having the correlative words therefore — because or for, and the two together 
comprising four parts : the first, a negative, the second, an affirmative or negative assigning a 
reason for the preceding negative, the thud an affirmative opposed to the first, and the fourth 
an affirmative or negative assigning a reason for the third. (See Classif. Double Compact.) 

Q. 3. You have said the third proposition, in the present instance, beginning with but, con- 
tains a perfect loose sentence in two parts : what is the nature of the sentence in each part ? 
A. The first, ending with gently, is a simple declarative sentence : (see Sentence 1st, 11, 12 and 
Reference :) the second is a compound declarative close. 

Q. 4. Will you define a close sentence '? A. It is one which contains a single proposition, 
comprising two or more subjects and verbs. (See Classif. Compound Close.) 

Q. 5. What unusual appendage has this sentence 5' A. It includes a parenthesis ; by 
which is meant a sentence or part of a sentence, included in another sentence or pail of a sen- 
tence, and neither necessary to the sense nor construction. (See Classif. Parenthesis.) 

Q. 6. What is the proper punctuation between the first and thud pail of the double compact ; 
that is, between thus and but ? A. The comma. (See Classif. Double Compact.) 

Q. 7. What, between the parts of the third ; that is, between gently and for T A. The 
semicolon. (See Sentence 1. 16.) 

Q. 8. What should be the punctuation of the parenthesis £ A. The parenthesis must al- 
ways have the same pause after it, as before it. As it is inserted here after imperfect sense, 
the comma, if any, should be inserted before and therefore after it. I say if any, because 
strictly speaking none should be inserted ; for if the parenthesis were absent, and and whirl- 
wind could not be separated by any pause. (See Classif. Parenthesis.) 

Q. 9. What is the general delivery of a double compact §" A. The first part, if consisting 
of a single member, is delivered with the waving slide ; that is, the slide formed by the 
sweeps of emphasis more or less fully developed: if comprising two or more members, each 
of these should be delivered in the same manner except the last ; which may either be deliv- 
ered in the same manner or with partial close. (See Rule VIII.) In the present instance, we 
have this choice ; for the effect of nor (see above) is precisely the same as if the member im- 
plied by it was really expressed. 

The succeeding propositions or parts of a double compact are delivered relatively like parts 
of a perfect loose sentence. (See 1st Sentence, 24, and Rule IX.) 

Q. 10. What are the emphatic words? A. Thus, gently, whirlwind, temperance and 
smoothness. 

Q. 11. Is emphasis on each of these words of the same kind ? A. No : that on whirlwind 
is deferred emphasis. 

Q. 12. What do you mean by deferred emphasis ? A. In theory torrent, tempest and 
whirlwind, are equally emphatic ; but in practice, the emphasis is deferred to the last, to avoid 
the recurrence of similar sounds. (See Emphasis, Sec I. 3.) 

Q. 13. What is the effect of emphasis on each ? A. If the negative part should be de- 
livered with the waving shde, the emphasis on thus will have its lower sweep limited to the 
word : if it terminates with partial close, the emphasis will coincide with it. (See Emph., Sec. 



308 EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 

J. 3. 4.) On gently and smoothness, emphasis coincides with partial and perfect close: on 
temperance, the lower sweep is confined to the word: (See Emph., Sec. II. 2:) on whirlwind a 
full development of the sweeps. (See Emph., Sec. I. 1.) 
14. Deliver the sentence. 

3d Sentence. 

Q. 1. What kind of sentence is this ? A. A compound declarative perfect loose with two 
parts. (See 1st Sentence, 1 — 5.) 

Q. 2. What is the sentence in the first of these parts ? A. A compound declarative close, 
(see 2d Sentence, 4,) preceded by the variable exclamation O ; which is here a mere key-note 
to what follows. (See Ch. VI. Simple Spontaneous Exclamations, 2. 5.) 

Q. 3. What, in the second part ? A. Also a compound declarative close : it includes a 
circumstance ; namely, for the most part. (See Sent. 1st, 18-21.) 

Q. 4. What is the proper punctuation between the parts? A. The semicolon ; for the 
connective who is expressed. (See Sent. 1st, 16.) 

Q. 5. What is the proper punctuation of the parts separately considered. A. The comma 
should be inserted between its principal members. (See Sent. 2d, 4.) 

Q. 6. What is the general delivery of the whole 5 (See Sent. 1st, 24.) 

Q. 7. What of each part ? (See Ride VI.) 

Q. 8. Which are the emphatic words ? A. Soul, rags, groundlings, most and noise. Rags 
and noise, deferred emphasis. (Sec 2d Sentence, 12.) 

Q. 9. What is the effect in each case 5 On soul and rags, circumflex : on most, full de- 
velopment : on groundlings and noise, it coincides with partial close. (See Sent. 1st, 29, 
2d, 13.) 

10. Deliver the sentence. 

4th Sentence. 

Q. 1. What is the name of this sentence ? A. It is a compound declarative perfect loose 
with two parts like the preceding sentence ; which see. 

Q. 2. What, of the parts V A. They are both simple declarative sentences. (See Sent. 
2d, 3.) 

Q. 3. What pause should separate them ? A. A colon. (See Classification, Loose Sen- 
tence; and Punctuation, Colon.) 

Q. 4. What is the general delivery of the whole sentence ? A. (See Sent. 3d, 6.) 

Q. 5. Are there any emphatic words 5 A. Yes: Termagant and Herod ; on both of which 
emphasis coincides with close. 

6. Deliver the sentence. 

5th Sentence. 

Q. 1. What is the nature of this sentence ? A. A compound declarative close: including 
the circumstance, " Pray you." (See. Sent. 1st, 18-21 : see also Sent. 3d, 2.) 

Q. 2. What is the general delivery of a close sentence ? A. (See Rule VI.) 

Q. 3. What are the emphatic woris ? A. Pray and avoid. 

Q. 4. What is the effect f A. The emphasis on pray, has the upper sweep cut off in 
consequence of falling on the first word in the sentence ; (see Emph., Sec. II. 2 ;) and on avoid, 
it has the lower sweep converted into the falling slide. (See Emphasis, Sec. II. 5.) 

5. Deliver it. 

6th Sentence. 

Q. 1. What name do you give this sentence ? A. It is a double compact, with the 1st and 
3d part expressed. (See Sent. 2d, 2.) 

Q. 2. How should it be punctuated J A. With a comma between the parts. (See 2d 
Sent., 6.) 

Q. 3. What is the general delivery f A. (See 2d Sent., 9, and also Rule VIII.) 

Q. 4. What are the emphatic words f A. Tame and tutor. 

Q. 5. The effect f A. On tame, full development : on tutor, emphasis coincides with per- 
fect close. 

6. Deliver it. 

7th Sentence. 

Q. 1. What ? A. A compound declarative perfect loose in five parts: ending respectively 
witn the words, action, observance, nature,playing, and pressure. 

Q. 2. What is the sentence in the first part ? A. A declarative single compact of the third 
form : the correlative words understood, so — as. (See Class., Sing. Comp. 3d form.) 

Q. 3. In the second part ? A. Simple declarative with the clause " but do it," going before, 
understood. (See Sent. 1st, 11, 12, and Reference.) 

Q. 4. In third part ? A. Simple declarative as in the preceding. 

Q. 5. In fourth part ? A. A mixed sentence, so — as this would be. (See Sent. 1. 14.) 

Q. 6. In the fifth ? A. Compound declarative imperfect loose. (See 1st Sent., 6. 7.) 

Q. 7. Having how many parts ; and what is the nature of these parts T A. It comprises 
two parts : the first, including the circumstance " as 'twere," being a compound declarative 
close, and the second, either close or imperfect loose, as it may be treated. I treat it as im- 
perfect loose. 



EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 309 

Q. 8. What pauses should be inserted between the principal parts ? A. A colon between 
the first and second, that is, between action and with, because the connective but is under- 
stood * (see Punct., Colon :) a colon between second and third, because the connective namely 
is unaerstood: a semicolon between third and fourth, and fourth and fifth, because the 
connectives for and whose are expressed. (See Punct., Semicolon, and also Classif, Loose 
Sent.) 

Q. 9. How should the sub-parts of the last principal part be separated ? A. By a colon ; 
for and, the connective before to show, is understood ; and the sequent semicolons are em- 
ployed between the subordinate sub-parts, because and is expressed. 

Q. 10. What is the general delivery of the entire sentence ? A. (See Sent. 3d, 6.) 

Q. 11. What are the emphatic words f A. Word, action, observance, nature, overdone, 
playing, nature, feature, image, body, pressure : on body and pressure, the emphasis is 
deferred. 

Q. 12. What is the effect in each case ? A. On action, observance, nature, playing, nature, 
feature, image and pressure, the emphasis coincides with partial or perfect close : on word 
and overdone, it produces the circumflex : on overstep and body, it is attended by a full de- 
velopment of the sweeps. 

13. Deliver the sentence. 

8th Sentence. 

Q. 1. This sentence : What ? A. A compound declarative perfect loose with two parts, 
properly separated by the semicolon : the relative which being expressed. 

Q. 2. In each part, what ? A. In the first, a compound declarative mixed sentence : 
having two compacts interwoven. The greater has the correlative words if— then, both un- 
derstood : the less, though — yet ; the first of which is expressed. (For the punctuation, see 
Compact Sentence.) In the second, we have a simple declarative sentence, including a circum- 
stance : in your allowance. 

Q. 3. What are the emphatic words ? A. Laugh, judicious, grieve, one, others. 

Q. 4. What is the nature of the emphasis on laugh and grieve, one and others? A. It is 
antithetic. (See for a full explanation of this, Emphasis, Sec. 1.2.) In theory, unskilful and 
judicious are also under antithetic emphasis ; but to avoid harshness, it is better to defer the 
emphasis to the last word. 

Q. 5. What is the effect ? A. On laugh, one and judicious, it produces circumflex : on 
grieve and others, it coincides with partial and perfect close. 

C. Deliver it. 

9th Sentence. 

Q. 1. What is it ? A. Comp. decl. perfect loose, in two parts : the 1st, containing a sim- 
ple decl. parenthesis and a single compact circumstance of the first form, neither — nor, the 
correlative words, is a mixed sentence ; combining close declarative at the beginning, with a 
single compact at the end, having the correlative words so — that : the second is a simple 
declarative. 

Q. 2. What, the emphatic words; and what effect? A. Highly, profanely, Christian and 
man with circumflex : journeyman with full development : well and abominably, with partial 
and perfect close. 

3. Deliver the sentence. 



SEC. H. HAMLET'S SOLILOQUY. 

1 To be, or not to be ? That is the question}: 
Whether 'tis nobler in the mind, to suffer 

2 The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune' 
Or take up arms against a sea of troubles, 

3 And, by opposing, end them. To die — to sleep. 
No more ? and, by a sleep, to say we end 

4 The heart-ache, and the thousand natural shocks 

5 That flesh is heir to ? 'Tis a consummation 

6 Devoutly to be wished. To die — to sleep": 

To sleep ! perchance to dream* ! Ay"": there's the rub y ; 
*7 For in that sleep of death what dreams may come, 
When we have shuffled off this mortal coil', 
Must give us pause. There's the respect 



310 EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 

That makes calamity of so long life ; 

For who would bear the whips and scorns of time, 

The oppressor's wrong, the proud man's contumely, 

The pangs of despised love, the law's delay, 

The insolence of office, and the spurns 

That patient merit of the unworthy takes, 

When he himself might his quietus make 

8 With a bare bodkin $ who would fardels bear, 
To groan and sweat under a weary life ; 

But that the dread of something after death, 
That undiscovered country, from whose bourn 
No traveller returns, puzzles the will, 
And makes us rather bear those ills we have, 
Than fly to others that we know not of? 

Thus conscience does make cowards of us alP; 
And thus the native hue of resolution 

9 Is sicklied o'er with the pale cast of thought ; 
And enterprises of great pith and moment, 
With this regard, their currents turn awry, 
And lose the name of action. 

hamlet's soliloquy rhetorically parsed. 
1st Sentence. 

Q. 1. What kind of sentence is this ? A. A double interrogative sentence. 

Q. 2. What is a double interrogative ? A. It is a single compact declarative, employed 
interrogatively : having whether — or, for correlative words. When so employed, the first of 
the correlative words, {whether,) is almost uniformly suppressed. (See Classification, Sec. II. 
Class II. Preliminary Remarks.) * 

Q. 3. Is the sentence complete, or fragmentary?' A. Fragmentary: if completed, it 
would read thus: u Am I to be after death, or am I not to be v The construction of the 
second part of a double interrogative is scarcely ever complete. {See preceding reference.) 

Q. 4. What is the proper punctuation between the parts ? A. That of the compact sen- 
tence, the comma; or, in cases of allowable deviation, the semicolon. (See Punc.,Dev. 1.) 

Q. 5. Is not the sign of interrogation often inserted between the parts S A. Yes ; but 
then it represents one or the other of these pauses. (See Punct., Sec. II. 1.) 

Q. 6. What is the general delivery S A. The first part is delivered with the rising slide 
to the disjunctive or, and the second part, with the failing slide from it. (See Rule XVII.) 

Q. 7. What are the emphatic words in this sentence 5 A. Beand7iot. 

Q. 8. What the effect of emphasis on these words ? A. The only effect on be, is to pro- 
duce a dip or indentation in the rising slide : (see Emph., Sec. II. 7. 10 :) on not, it defers the 
falling slide until that word is reached ; and it is reached by a level delivery, or by an upper 
sweep. (See Emph., Sec. II. 8. 10.) , 

9. Deliver the sentence. 

2d Sentence. 

Q. 1. "What sentence is this ? A. A compound declarative perfect loose, with two parts : 
the first, a simple declarative, and the second, including a circumstance, a single compact of 
the first form : correlative words whether — or. (See HamleVs Soliloquy, 8th Sent.) If the 
construction of this sentence was complete, it would have three parts : it being necessary to 
supply a third, to make out the connection of thought, thus : " That is the question ;" which 
is equivalent to another ; namely, " Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer," &c. &c. 

Q. 2. What should be the punctuation of the sentence as it stands 5 A. A colon should 
separate the two parts ; for an entire part and two connectives are understood. (See Punct. t 
Colon, and Loose Sent., Classification.) 

Q. 3. What pause shoidd be inserted between the parts of the compact in the second 
part f A. A comma ; for the first part makes imperfect sense. (See Punct., Comma, and 
Classification, Compact Sent.) 



EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 311 

Q. 4. What is the general law for the delivery of a perfect loose ? A. (See Rule IX.) 

Q. 5. What are the emphatic words ? A. Question, suffer, arms and end. 

Q. 6. What the effect of emphasis on each ? A. Emphasis on question, coincides with 
partial close : on suffer and arms, it produces a full development of the sweeps : on end, in 
consequence of the proximity of this word to close, it has its lower sweep converted into the 
falling slide. 

7. Deliver the sentence. 

3d Sentence 

Q. 1. What S 1 A. A simple declarative, with the verb is understood. 

Q. 2. Why is the rhetorical pause inserted after die ? A. Because the verb is omitted ; 
and more especially because the sentence is thereby broken. (See Punct. Rhet. P.) 

Q. 3. What is the general delivery of a simple declarative 5 A. (See Rule I.) 

Q. 4. What is the emphatic word S A. Sleep ; and emphasis on it coincides with perfect 
close. 

5. Deliver the sentence. 

4th Sentence. 

Q. 1. How do you name this sentence 5" A. It is a fragmentary compound perfect loose 
definite interrogative, consisting of two parts, properly separated by the semicolon ; which is 
here represented by the rising slide : by the semicolon, because the connective and is ex- 
pressed. (See Punctuation, Semicolon, and Classification, Loose Sentence.) 

Q. 2. What do you mean by a definite interrogative ? A. (See Classification, Class II. 
Sec. II. Loose JDef. Int.) 

Q. 3. You say fragmentary : in what respect f A. No more, is an abbreviation of "Is 
to die no more than to sleep V" 

Q. 4. What is the nature of this first part of the perfect loose ? A. It is a single com- 
pact of the first form, with the correlative words brought together in the middle. (See 
Classification, Compound Sent., Sing. Comp.) 

Q. 5. What is the nature of the sentence in the second part f A. A compound close 
interrogative. It includes the circumstance "by a sleep." (See Classification.) 

Q. 6. What is the general law for the delivery of a loose definite interrogative ? A. 
(See Rule XII.) 

Q. 7. What are the emphatic words ? A. More, by and heir. 

Q. 8. What the effect in each case ? A. A mere dip or indentation in the rising slide. 
(-See Emph., Sec. II. 7.) 

9. Deliver the sentence. 

5th Sentence. 

Q. 1. What kind of sentence is this ? A. It is a simple declarative, with emphasis on 
the last word coinciding with perfect close. (See Sentence 3d.) 
Q. 2. Will you deliver the sentence ? 

6th Sentence. 

Q. 1. What sentence is this ? A. A fragmentary compound decl. exclam. perfect loose 
sentence. Written out fully, it would appear thus : " To die is to sleep ; but if to die is to 
sleep ! then, perchance it is also to dream !" It comprises, it will be observed, two parts : the 
first, a simple declarative, (see sentence 3rf,) and the second, a single compact. 

Q. 2. But why do you treat the second part as compact ? A. Because Hamlet is reason- 
ing; he reasons logically; and the compact sentence is necessary to his logic. He had 
already reached the conclusion that death is a sleep, and had said that if by sleep, we coidd 
understand an end of all the evil to which flesh is heir, it is a consummation devoutly to 
be wished ; but that the sleep of death should be taken in this sense, is not so clear to his 
mind. He therefore repeats his previous conclusion as a new premise ; and the logical 
inference at once strikes him ; namely, that if to die is to sleep, then, like sleep, death also 
may have its dreams. 

By many the repetition " To sleep !" is treated as a definite interrogative exclamation. Dr. 
Porter (see Analysis of Rhetorical Delivery.) treats it as such. But this is to make Hamlet 
ask a question which he had already satisfactorily answered ; for he had already decided that 
death is a sleep ; and it remained to determine only, whether death is not something more 
than sleep. To this, " To sleep !" employed as a question, is not relevant. To treat it as 
such, is therefore not admissible. 

Should it be suggested, that if " To sleep !" is not equivalent to " Is to die to sleep ?" it 
may be, nevertheless, to " Is to die no more than to sleep ?" my reply is, that this is to make 
Hamlet ask the same question twice over ; for this is precisely the question in verse 4th ; and 
without irresistible reasons for it, its repetition is not to be supposed : especially when such a 
repetition is manifestly incompatible with that strictly logical and philosophical character 
which Shakspeare has ascribed to the speaker. 

Q. 3. What pause should separate the simple declarative part from the single compact ? 
A. A colon ; because the connective but is understood. 



312 EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 

Q. 4. What pause does the exclamation point after sleep, and also the excl. point after 
dreams, represent ? A. After sleep, that is, between parts of the compact, it represents the 
semicolon ; for both the correlative words are understood. (See Classif. Single Compact, ex- 
ception to Punctuation.) 

At the end of the sentence, it represents the period. 

Q. 5. What is the general law of delivery for Hie entire loose sentence ? A. {See Rule 
IX.) 

Q. 6. Does the fragmentary character of the single compact in the second part, in any way 
modify its delivery ? A. No. The fragments should be delivered precisely as if the sentences 
were complete. (See Rule VII. Gen. J\"otc, 1.) 

Q. 7. What are the emphatic words 5" A. Sleep, sleep and dreams. 

Q. 8. What is the effect of emphasis in each instance 5 A. Emphasis on sleep, at the end 
of the simple declarative, coincides with partial close ; on sleep, at tiie end of the first part of 
the single compact, it produces circumflex ; and on dreams it coincides with perfect close. The 
exclamatoiy character of the sentence must nofc be overlooked. This gives breadth and in- 
tensity to the emphasis. 

9. Deliver the sentence. 

7th Sentence. 

Q. 1. Of what kind is it S A. Ay being the representative of the preceding last part of 
the single compact, "It is perchance to dream," (see Classify Simple Declar. Sentences,) it 
may form either a distinct part of the whole sentence, or the first part of a single compact, of 
which "There's the rub" shall form the second ; that is, as if written thus: u Ay\; and there's 
the ruV ;" or thus: "Ay, and there's the rub'*." Or which is the same thing, either thus, 
u It is perchance to dream* ; and there's the r«i v ;" or thus: "It is perchance to dream', and 
there's the rubV" If treated in the latter way, that is, as part o>a single compact of the 
third form, the correlative words to be supplied are so — as, thus : " as it is perchance to 
dream', so there's the rub^." 1 In this case ay, being by supposition the last word of the first 
part, immediately preceding an intermediate pause and under emphasis, will be delivered with 
circumflex ; and the pause between it and the second part, should be a semicolon ; because 
the correlative words are both understood. 

I prefer, however, to treat it as forming by itself a distinct part of the entire sentence ; and 
the entire sentence, consequently, as a declarative periect loose in three parts : the first part 
comprising ay, a simple declarative sentence, the second, ending with rub, another simple 
declarative, and the third with pause ; which is a mixed sentence. I prefer this, because the 
delivery of ay under emphasis in combination with partial close, it seems to me, is more 
in consonance with the gravity of the train of thought,' than its combination with the bend, 
producing circumflex. The latter demands a tone of surprise, irony or exultation; and either 
of these is irrelevant. 

Q. 2. You say the third part is a mixed sentence : (see Classif., Mixed Sentences :) what 
combination does it contain? A. A combination of simple declarative and single compact: 
the latter, having the correlative words then — whai^ the last of which only is expressed, forms 
the subject, or nominative case, of the former. " In that sleep of death" is a circumstance. 
(See Classif. Circumstance.) 

Q. 3. What is the general delivery of the whole perfect loose ? A. (See Rule IX.) 

Q. 4. What are the emphatic words 5 and the effect of emphasis on them 5' A. Ay, rub, 
what and pause. Emphasis on ay, rub and pause coincides with parti;d and periect close: 
(see Emph., Sec. II. 4:) on what it has a very full development of the sweeps. (See ibid. Sec. 
II. 1.) 

5. Deliver the sentence. 

8th Sentence. 

Q. 1. What is the proper name of this sentence ? A. It is a semi-interrogative sentence; 
that is, a sentence in part declarative or exclamatory, and in part interrogative. (See Classif., 
Class II. definitions and examples.) 

Q. 2. What is the sentence in the declarative portion I A. Compound close. 

Q. 3. In the interrogative portion ? A. Indefinite imperfect loose. 

Q. 4. What do you mean by indefinite ? A. See Classification, Class II. 2.) 

Q. 5. Why do you say imperfect loose ? A. Because for must be supplied before the 
second part. (See definition of Imperfect Loose in Classif.) 

Q. 6. Of how many pails does the interrogative portion consist ? A. Two parts. 

Q. 7. What is the nature of the sentence in the first f A. It is a compound compact in- 
definite of the second form : having the correlative words when — then, reversed. 

Q. 8. What is the second part 5 A. A compound perfect loose with two parts : the first 
ending with life, and the second with the end of the sentence : the former being a compoimd 
close, and the latter a mixed sentence ; combining a compoimd close in the beginning, with a 
single compact at the end. 

Q. 9. What is the nature of the connection between the declarative and interrogative por- 
tions of the semi-interrogative ? A. Loose ; that is to say, the two together form a perfect 
ioose sentence. (See Classif, Semi-inter rog. for similar examples.) 

Q. 10. What is the general delivery of a semi-interrogative 5' A. (See Rule XVIII., also 



EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 313 

Rule XV. and XIII., and especially the subjoined remark on the modification of the last Rule, by 
length of sentence?) 

Q. 11. What are the emphatic words in the declarative portion? A. There's, calamity, 
life. 

Q. 12. The effect on each £ . A. On there's, full development : on calamity, the lower sweep 
is confined to the word: a pause being possible after it: (See Punct. Comma: Cases of 
Omission, 5 :) and on life, the emphasis coincides with partial close. 

Q. 13. What are the emphatic words in the first part of the interrogative portion 5 1 A. 
Who, time, wrong, continually, love, delay, office, unworthy, bodkin. 

Q. 14. The effect f A. These emphatic words collectively convert the uninterrupted falling 
slide into an interrupted descent through a succession of -levels : each of -them having the 
same effect on so much of the sentence as lies between it and the preceding emphatic word ; 
that is to say, it defers the falling slide on that portion of the sentence until the emphasis is 
reached ; when the voice descends to a lower point, and proceeds in the same manner until 
the next emphasis is reached ; and thus to the end. (See Emph., Sec. II. 8.) 

Q. 15. What are the emphatic words in the second part ? A. Fardels, life, have, others 
and of. 

Q. 16. What is the effect ? A. The same as in the preceding part ; except that the last 
member of the sentence being compact, and the emphasis on have, others and of, antithetic, 
it becomes necessary to mark these circumstances by delivering have, immediately preceding 
the intermediate pause, with circumflex, and others, not so situated, with a full development 
of the emphatic sweeps. 

17. Deliver the entire semi-interrogative. 

9th Sentence. 

Q. 1. Describe this sentence. A. It is a compound declarative perfect loose, with three 
parts : the first, ending with all, and the second with thought, are simple declaratives ; and 
the third, is a compoimd close. The pails are properly separated by the semicolon, because 
the connective and is in both instances expressed. (For the general delivery, see Rule IX.) 
The emphatic words are all, thought and action, coinciding with partial and perfect close, 
moment having circumflex, and this, full development of the emphatic sweeps. Thus, in 
both instances, and with this regard, are circumstances. 

Q. 2. Will you deliver the sentence 1 



SEC. III. THE SPEECH OF^BRUTUS. 

1 Romans, countrymen, and lovers ! hear me for my cause', 
and be silent that j^ou may hear N : believe me for mine honor 1 , 
and have respect to mine honor, that you may believe" : cen- 
sure me in your wisdom', and awake your senses, that you may 
the better judge". 

2 If there be any in this assembly 7 , any.dear friend of Ccesar's', 
to him, I say, that Brutus 's love to Caesar 7 , was no less than 

3 his y . If, then, that friend demand why Brutus rose against 
Caesar 7 , this is my answer^ : not that I loved Caesar less', but 

4 that I loved Rome more^. Had you rather Caesar were living, 
and die all slaves, than that Caesar were dead, to live all freemen ? 

5 As Caesar loved me 7 , 1 weep for him v : as he was fortunate' , I rejoice 
at it : as he was valiant', I honor him ; but as he was ambitious', 

6 I slew him x . There is tears for his love 7 , joy for his fortune 7 , 
1 honor for his valor', and death for his ambition\ Who 's here 

8 so base, that would-be a bondman? If any', speak x ; for him 

9 have I offended. Who's here so rude, that would not be a Ro- 
10 man ? If any', speak"- ; for him have I offended. 1 1 Who's here 
12 so vile, that will not love his country? If any', speafc; for 

27 



314 EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 

13 him have I offended\ I pause for a reply. 14 None! — 

15 Then none have I offended. 16 I have done no more to Caesar*, 

17 than you shall do to Brutus. The question of his death is en- 
rolled in the capitol s : his glory not extenuated, wherein he was 
worthy'', nor his offences enforced for which he suffered deaih>. 

18 Here comes his body, mourned by Mark Antony^; who, though 
he had no hand in his death, shall receive the benefit of his dy- 
ing" : a place in the commonwealth^; as which of you shall not ? — 
With this I depart : that, as I slew my best lover for the good 

19 of Rome', I have the same dagger for myself, when it shall 
please my country to need my death s . 



THE SPEECH OF BRUTUS RHETORICALLY PARSED. 

1st Sentence. 

The exclamatory part of this sentence is compound compellative ; (See Classification ;) and 
what follows is compound declarative perfect loose in three pails, properly separated by the 
colon. (Sec Punct. Colon, and Classif. Perfect Loose.) The parts may be treated either as 
single compacts of the third form, with when — then or as — so, for correlative words; or as close 
declaratives. I prefer the latter. For the general delivery, see Rule IX. The emphatic words 
are those marked as such. On cause, honor, wisdom, senses, the lower sweep, confined to the 
word : on may it convert? the lower sweep into falling slide : on believe and judge, it coincides 
with partial and perfect close. 

2d Sentence. 

A compound declarative single compact of the second form. For the punctuation, see 
Punct. Comma-, and Classsif. Sing. Compact: for the general delivery, see Rule VII. The 
emphatic words are Caisar's, him, Brutus^s and his. On the first two, the lower sweep is con- 
fined to the word ; on the third, full development ; and on the last, coincides with perfect 
close. 

id Sentence. 

A compound declarative perfect loose in two parts, properly separated by the colon, be- 
cause namely is understood. (See Punct., Colon.) In the first part we have a* single compact 
of the second form, if— then, correlative words, and in the second part, the same with correla- 
tive words indeed— but. For the punctuation, see 2d Sentence. For general delivery, see Rule 
IX. The emphatic words are against, ansiccr, not, less, more. On against and not, empha- 
sis produces full development : on answer and more, it coincides with partial and perfect close * 
on less, it is exhausted on the word. 

\ 4th Sentence. 

A compound definite interrogative single compact, of the first form: correlative words rather 
—than. For the general delivery, see Rale XI. The emphasis on living, slaves, dead, freemen, 
antithetic. For its effect, see Emph., Sec. II. 7. 

5th Sentence. 

A perfect loose declarative, in tour parts ; each of which is a single compact of the first 
form : the correlative words so — as, it will be observed, are here equivalent to because — there- 
fore. A colon, the proper punctuation between the first and second, and the second and third 
part, because the connective is understood : a semicolon between the third and fourth, because 
the connective is expressed. Full development of emphasis on loved ; lower sweep exhausted 
on fortunate, valiant and ambitious, and on weep, rejoice, honor and slew, converted into the 
falling slide. 

6th Sentence. 

Either a single compact of the thud form, with and substituted for the last of the correlative 
words as — so, (as there is tears, &c, so death, &c.,) or a close declarative. Punctuation and 
general delivery the same on either hypothesis. Emphasis on all the words marked as em- 
phatic, produces full development. 



EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 315 

1th Sentence. 

A compound indefinite interrogative close. Emphasis on who and bondman. Who being 
the first word of the sentence, the slide, of course, is here not deferred at all. (See Emph., Sec. 
II. 8.) 

8th Sentence. 

A compound decl. perfect loose, in two parts : the first a single compact : the second, a simple 
declarative. A semicolon between the parts, because for, the connective, is expressed. Em- 
phasis on speak and offended coincides with partial and perfect close : on him, the lower sweep 
is exhausted on the word ; for a pause is possible after 'it in consequence of the inversion of the 
sentence. (See Punct., Omissions of the Comma, 4.) 

9th Sentence. 

A compound indefinite interrogative close. (See 1th Sentence.) Emphasis on rude and Ro- 
man. The former is in antithesis with base in the preceding question. For the effect, see 
Emph., Sect. II. 8. 

10th Sentence. (See 8th.) 

11th Sentence. (See 9th.) 

12th Sentence. (8th and 10th.) 

13th Sentence. 

A simple declarative sentence. For general delivery, see Rule I. Emphasis on reply, and 
coincides with perfect close. 

14th Sentence. 

This is a fragmentary simple definite interrogative exclamation. For the general delivery, 
see Rule II. It receives emphasis as if the sentence was complete. (See Emph., Sec. II. 7.) 

15th Sentence. 

A simple declarative. Emphasis on none contradictory, and converting the lower sweep into 
falling slide. (See Emph., Sec. II. vi.) 

16th Sentence. 

A compound declarative single compact of the first form : correlative words more— than. 
Emphasis on Ccesar and Brutus antithetic : exhausting the lower sweep on the former, and 
coinciding on the latter with perfect close. 

17th Sentence. 

A compound declarative perfect loose, in two parts : the first a simple declarative, and the 
second a double compact with the first part only, having two members, expressed. (See 
Classify Sect. II. Class I. Double Compact, definition and examples, 3.) For the general de- 
livery, see Rule IX. For the proper pauses, see Punct., Comma, and Classif. as above. Em- 
phatic words capital, extenuated, enforced, death. Emphasis on capital and death coincides with 
partial and perfect close : (see Emph., Sect. II. 4 :) on extenuated, it produces full development : 
(see Emph., Sect. II. 1 :) on enforced, the lower sweep confined to the word ; because a pause 
may be made after it, for the reason that the sentence may be transposed at that point. (See 
Punctuation, Comma, Omissions, 5.) 

18th Sentence. 

A semi-inteiTogative. The declarative portion is perfect loose, in two parts : properly separ- 
ated by the semicolon, because who, the connective, is expressed. Emphasis on Jlntony, death, 
dying, commonwealth. On all of them except death, it coincides with partial close : on death 
the lower sweep is exhausted on the word. 

The interrogative portion is a simple indefinite interrogative, with emphasis on which and not. 

19th Sentence. 

A compound declarative perfect loose in two parts, separated by the colon, because namely 
is understood. The first part a simple declarative ; the second, a mixed sentence combining 
two compacts. Emphasis on depart and death coincides with partial and perfect close ; on 
lover it produces full development : on myself, the lower sweep limited to the word. 



316 EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 



SEC. IV. THE PROPER LIMITS OF BENEVOLENCE. 

1 Kind and amiable people ! your benevolence is most lovely in 
its display, but oh ! it is perishable in its consequences. Does 
it never occur to you that in a few years this favorite will die ; 

2 and that he will go to the place where neither cold nor hunger 
will reach him ; but that a mighty interest remains, of which 
both of us may know the certainty, though neither you nor I 
can calculate the extent ? Your benevolence is too short : it 

3 does not shoot far enough ahead : it is like regaling a child with 
a sweetmeat or a toy, and then abandoning the happy unre- 
flecting infant to exposure. You make the poor old man happy 

4 Avith your crumbs and your fragments, but he is an infant on 
the mighty range of duration ; and will you leave the soul, 
which has the infinity to go through, to its chance ? How comes 
it that the grave should throw so impenetrable a shroud over 

5 the realities of eternity ? how comes it that heaven, and hell, 
and judgment, should be treated as so many nonentities ; and 
that there should be as little real and operative sympathy felt 
for the soul which lives forever, as for the body after it is dead, 
or for the dust into which it moulders ? Eternity is longer than 
time ; the arithmetic, my brethren, is all on one side upon this 

6 question ; and the wisdom which calculates, and guides itself 
by calculation, gives its weighty and respectable support to 
what may be called the benevolence of faith. — Chalmers. 

Sentence 1st. — A single compact, 2d form: correlatives indeed — but: the first part preceded 
by a compellative, and the last including a spontaneous excl. Sentence 2d. — lmperf. loose de- 
finite interrog. in three parts: but a poor substitute for and in the third part. Sent. 3d. — Comp. 
decl. pert', loose in three parts. Sent. \ih. — Semi-interrog: declar. portion single compact, 2d 
form : indeed — but : the interrog. definite close : the declar. and interrog. have a loose con- 
nection. Sent. 5th. — Perfect loose indef. interrog. : the second part, iniperf. loose. Sent. 6th. — 
Pert, loose declar. in three parts. 



SEC. V. A TWOFOLD PEACE. 

1 There is a twofold peace. 2 The first is negative. 3 It is 
relief from disquiet and corroding care : it is repose after con- 

4 flict and storms. But there is another and a higher peace, to 
which this is but the prelude : " a peace of God which passeth 
understanding," and properly called " the kingdom of God within 

5 us." This state is any thing but negative. It is the highest and 
most strenuous action of the soul ; but an entirely harmonious 

6 action, in which all our powers and affections are blended in a 
beautiful proportion, and sustain and perfect one another. It is 

V more than silence after storms : it is as the concord of all melo- 



EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 317 

dious sounds. Has the reader never known a season, when, in 
the fullest flow of thought and feeling, in the universal action 

8 of the soul, an inward calm, profound as midnight silence, jet 
bright as the still summer noon, full of joy, but unbroken by 
one throb of tumultuous passion, has breathed through his 
spirit, and given him a glimpse and presage of the serenity of a 

9 happier world ? Of this character is the peace of religion. It 
is a conscious harmony with God and the creation : an alliance 

10 of love with all beings : a sympathy with all that is pure and 
happy : a surrender of every separate will and interest : a par- 
ticipation of the spirit and life of the universe : an entire con- 

11 cord of purpose, with its Infinite Original. This is peace, and 
the true happiness of man; and we think that human na- 

12 ture has never lost sight of this its great end. It has always 
sighed for a repose, in which energy of thought and will 
might be tempered with an all-pervading tranquillity. We 

13 seem to discover aspirations after this good, a dim consciousness 
of it, in all ages of the world. We think we see it in those 

14 systems of Oriental and Grecian philosophy, which proposed as 
the consummation of present virtue a release from all disquiet, 
and an intimate union and harmony with the divine mind. We 
even think, that we trace this consciousness, this aspiration, in 

15 the works of ancient art which time has spared us; in which 
the sculptor, aiming to embody his deepest thoughts of human 
perfection, has joined with the fulness of life and strength, a 
repose, which breathes into the spectator an admiration as calm 

16 as it is exalted. Man, we believe, never loses the sentiment of 
his true good. There are yearnings, sighings, which he does 
not himself comprehend ; which break forth alike in his pros- 
perous and adverse seasons ; which betray a deep, indestructible 

1*7 faith in a good he has not found ; and which, in proportion as 
they grow distinct, rise to God, and concentrate the soul on 
him, as at once his life and rest : the fountain at once of energy 
and repose. Channing. 

Sent. 1st, Qd, 5t h— Simple declar. Sent. 3d, 4th, 6th.— Comp. declar. perf. loose. Sent. 1th.— 
Single compact, 3d form : therefore— for. Sent. 8th.— Compound def. interrog. mixed sentence : 
then — when, though — yet, indeed — but, as — so, happier — than. Sent. 9th. — Simple declar. trans- 
posed. Sent. 10th. — Compound decl. imperf. loose in six parts. Sent. 11th. — Pert', loose decl. 
Sent 12th.— Decl. close. Sent. 13th.— The same Sent, lith— Mixed (close and singie com- 

{act so — as) decl. Sent. 15th. — Decl. perf. loose in two parts. Sent. VSth. — Close decl. Sent. 
1th.— Imperf. loose decl. : the last part imperf. loose. 



SEC. VI. THE VALUE OF PUBLIC FAITH. 

1 To expatiate on the value of public faith may pass with some 
men for declamation : to such men I have nothing to say. To 

27* 



318 EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 

others, I will urge, can any circumstance mark upon a people 

2 more turpitude and debasement ? can any thing tend more to 
make men think themselves mean ; or to degrade to a lower 
point their estimation of virtue, and their standard of action ? 

It would not merely demoralize mankind ; it tends to break 

3 all the ligaments of society ; to dissolve that mysterious charm 
which attracts individuals to the nation ; and to inspire in its 
stead a repulsive sense of shame and disgust. 

4 What is patriotism '? Is it a narrow affection for the spot 

5 where a man was born ? are the very clods where we tread 
entitled to this ardent preference because they are greener ? 

6 No, sir; this is not the character of the virtue, and it soars 
higher for its object : it is an extended self-love : mingling with 
all the enjoyments of life, and twisting itself with the minutest 

7 filaments of the heart. It is thus we obey the laws of society, 
because they are the laws of virtue. In their authority we see, 

8 not the array of force and terror, but the venerable image of 

9 our country's honor. Every good citizen makes that honor his 
own, and cherishes it, not only as precious, but as sacred. He 

10 is willing to risk his life in its defence, and is conscious that he 
gains protection while he gives it; for what rights of a citizen 
will be deemed inviolable when a state renounces the principles 

11 that constitute their security? Or, if his life should not be in- 
vaded, what would its enjoyments be in a country, odious in 
the eye of strangers and dishonored in his own? Could he 

12 look with affection and veneration to such a country as his 

13 parent? The sense of having one would die within him: he 
would blush for his patriotism, if he retained any ; and justly, 

14 for it would be a vice. He would be a banished man in his 
native land. Ames. 

Sent. 2d. — Semi-interrog. : interrog. portion def. interrog. perf. loose. Sent. 3d. — Single 
compact, 3d form: therefore— for : the second part iuiperf. loose, or close. Sent. 5th. — Def. 
interrog. perf. loose. Sent. 6th. — JVb is followed by its equivalent: and after virtue clearly 
used for for. The sentence is then a double compact : first and second parts expressed : two 
members in the first part: the second part perfect loose. Sent. 1th. — Single comp. 2d form: 
therefore — because. Sent. &th. — Mixed : part simple decL ; part double compact, first and 
third part expressed. Sent. 9th. — Mixed: close, and three single compacts: indeed — but, so — 
as, so — as. Sent. 10th. — Semi-interrog. : loose connection between decl. and interrog. portion ; 
the latter indef. interrog. single compact : then — when. 



SEC. VII. PERPETUITY OF THE UNIOX. 



I have not allowed myself, sir, to look beyond the union, to 
see what might lie hidden in the dark recess behind ; I have not 
coolly weighed the chances of preserving liberty, when the 
bonds that unite us together shall be broken asunder ; I have 
not accustomed myself to hang over the precipice of disunion, 



EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 319 

to see whether, with my short sight, I can fathom the depth 
of the abyss below ; nor could I regard him as a safe counsellor in 
the affairs of this government, whose thoughts should be mainly- 
bent on considering, not how the union should be best preserved, 
but how tolerable might be the condition of the people when it 
shall be broken up and destroyed. 

2 While the union lasts, we have high, exciting, gratifying 

3 prospects spread out before us, for us and our children. Be- 
yond that I seek not to penetrate the veil. God grant that, in 

4 my day at least, that curtain may not rise : God grant, that on 
my vision never may be opened what lies behind. When my 
eyes shall be turned to behold, for the last time, the sun in 
heaven, may I not see him shining on the broken and dishonored 
fragments of a once glorious union ; on states dissevered, dis- 
cordant, belligerent ; on a land rent with civil feuds, or drenched, 

5 it may be, in fraternal blood ! let their last feeble and lingering 
glance, rather, behold the gorgeous ensign of the republic, now 
known and honored throughout the earth, still full high ad- 
vanced : its arms and trophies streaming in their original lustre: 
not a stripe erased or polluted, nor a single star obscured : bear- 
ing for its motto, no such miserable interrogatory as, What is 
all this worth ? nor those other words of delusion and folly, 
liberty first, and union afterwards ; but everywhere, spread all 
over in characters of living light, blazing on all its ample folds 
as they float over the sea and over the land, and in every wind 
under the whole heavens, that other sentiment dear to every 
true American heart : libert}? - and union ; now and forever ; one 
and inseparable ! 

Sent. 1st. — Double compact : first part only, comprising four members, expressed. Sent. 
2d. — Decl. close. Sent. 3d. — Simple decl. transposed. Sent. 4th. — Decl. loose in two parts. 
Sent. 5th. Mixed sent. (See Ciassif. Mixed Scut., where this sent, will be found.) 



SEC. VIII. VIRTUE AND PIETY ARE CONFORMITY TO NATURE. 

1 I find myself existing upon a little spot, surrounded every way 

2 by an immense unknown expansion. Where am I ? what sort 
of place do I inhabit ? Is it exactly accommodated, in every 

3 instance, to my convenience ? is there no excess of cold, none of 
heat, to offend me ? am I never annoyed by animals either of 
my own kind, or a different ? is every thing subservient to me, 

4 as though I had ordered all myself ? No ; nothing like it ; the 

5 farthest from it possible. The world appears not then origi- 

6 nally made for the private convenience of me alone ? It does not. 
1 But is it not possible so to accommodate it, by my own particu- 
8 lar industry ? If to accommodate man and beast, heaven and 



320 EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 

9 earth, if this be beyond me, it is not possible. What conse- 

10 quence then follows ? Can there be any other than this : if I seek 

an interest of my own detached from that of others, I seek an 

interest which is chimerical, and can have no existence ? How 

12 then must I determine ? 11 Have I no interest at all ? If I 

13 have not, I am a fool for staying here : 'tis a smoky house ; and 

14 the sooner out of it the better. But why no interest? Can I 

15 be contented with none, but one separate and detached? is a 
social interest joined with others such an absurdity as not to be 

16 admitted? The bee, the beaver, and the tribes of herding ani- 
mals, are enough to convince me that the thing is, somewhere at 

17 least, possible. How then am I assured, that it is not equally 

18 true of man? Admit it, and what follows? 19 If so, then 
honor and justice are my interest : then the whole train of 
moral virtues are my interest ; without some portion of which, 
not even thieves can maintain society. 

20 But farther still: I stop not here; I pursue this social inter- 

21 est as far as I can trace my several relations. I pass from my 
own flock, my own neighborhood, my own nation, to the whole 

22 race of mankind, as dispersed throughout the earth. Am I not 
related to them all by the mutual aids of commerce : by the 
general intercourse of arts and letters : by that common nature, 
of which we all participate ? 

23 Again : I must have food and clothing. 24 Without a 

25 proper genial warmth, I must instantly perish. Am I not re- 
lated in this view to the very earth itself : to the distant sun 
from whose beams I derive vigor : to that stupendous course 
and order of the infinite host of heaven, by which the times and 

26 seasons ever uniformly pass on? Were this order once con- 
founded, I could not probably survive a moment : so absolutely 
do I depend on this common welfare. 

27 What then have I to do but to enlarge virtue into piety ? 

28 Not only honor and justice, and what I owe to man is my inter- 
est, but gratitude also ; acquiescence ; resignation ; adoration ; 
and all I owe to this great polity, and its greater Governor, our 
common parent. 

29 But if all these moral and divine habits be my interest, L«need 
not, surely, seek for a better ; I have an interest compatible with 
the spot on which I live : I have an interest which may exist, 
without altering the plan of Providence ; without mending or 
marring the general order of events. I can hear whatever hap- 

30 pens with manlike magnanimity, can be contented and fully 
happy in the good which I possess, and can pass through this 
turbid, this fickle, this fleeting period, without bewailings or 
envyings or murmurings or complaints. — Harris. 



EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 321 

Sent. 1st. — Close Decl. : " which is" understood before surrounded. Sent. 2d.— Perf. loose 
hidef. interrog. Sent. 3d. — Perf. loose def. interrog. Sent. 4th. — Double compact: first and 
third pait expressed : first part has two members : semicolon between the parts, because both 
correlatives are understood. (See Sing: Compact, Punctuation.) Sent. 5th. — Indirect interrog. 
Sent. 8th. — Single compact, 2d form : two members in the first part. Sent. 10th.— Compound 
perf. loose def. interrog. Sent. 13th.— Decl. loose with three parts. Sent. 18th. — Semi-inter- 
rog. : connection between the decl. and interrog. compact, 3d form, 3d var. Sent. 19£A. — Decl 
loose with two parts : 1st part imperf. loose or sing, compact. Sent. 20th. — The same, with a 
double compact in the second part. Sent. 22d and 25th. — Compoiuid def. interrog. imperfect 
loose. Sent. 29th.— Mixed : if— then, therefore— because : the last part of the second compact 
beginning with because, perf. loose in two parts : last, imperf. loose. 



SEC. IX. TRUTH INVINCIBLE IF LEFT TO GRAPPLE WITH FALSEHOOD ON 
EQUAL TERMS. 

1 Though all the winds of doctrine were let loose to play upon 
the earth, so Truth be in the field, we do injuriously, by licens- 

2 ing and prohibiting, to doubt her strength. Let her and False- 
hood grapple : who ever knew Truth put to the worse in a free 
and open encounter ? who knows not that Truth is strong, next 

3 to the Almighty ? She needs no policies, nor stratagems, nor 
licensings, to make her victorious ; those are the shifts and de- 
fences that error uses against her power. Give her but room, 

4 and do not bind her when she sleeps ; for then she speaks not 
true, but then rather she turns herself into all shapes, except 
her own, and perhaps tunes her voice according to the time, 
until she be adjured into her own likeness. — Milton. 

Sent. 1st. — Mixed sent, though — yet, if— then : so stands for if. Sent. 2d. — Semi-interrog. : 
loose connection between decl. and interrog. : the interrog. perf. loose. Sent. 3d. — Double 
compact, 1st and 2d part expressed. Sent. 4th— Perf. loose. 



SEC. X. THE RESULTS OF FREE DISCUSSION. 

When the cheerfulness of the people is so sprightly up, as that 
it hath not only wherewithal to guard well its own freedom and 
safety, but to spare and to bestow upon the solidest and sub- 

1 limest points of controversy, and new invention ; it betokens us 
not degenerated, nor drooping to a fatal decay, but casting off 
the old and wrinkled skin of corruption, to outlive these pangs, 
and wax young again : entering the glorious ways of truth and 
virtue ; destined to become great and honorable in these latter 
ages. Methinks I see, in my mind, a noble and puissant nation 

2 rousing herself, like a strong man after sleep, and shaking her 
invincible locks : methinks I see her as an eagle mewing her 
mighty youth, and kindling her endazzled eyes at the full mid- 
day beam; purging and unsealing her long-abused sight, at 
the fountain itself of heavenly radiance, while the whole noise 



322 EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 

of timorous flocking birds, with those also that love the twilight, 
nutter about, amazed at what she means, and would prognosti- 
cate a year of sects and schisms. — Milton. 

Sent. Is*.— Mixed ; as a whole single compact, 2d form : when— then : the first part of this 
contains two other compacts : so — cs and nuked— but : the second, a double compact : 1st and 
3d part expressed : of which again the third part, is loose. Sent. 2d. — Decl. pert', loose in two 
parts : the first ending at locks ; the second, imperf. loose. 



SEC. XI. THE INFLUENCE OF ELEGANT LITERATURE. 

There also are the eloquence, the literature, the poetry of all 
times and tongues ; those glorious efforts of genius that rule, 

1 with a never-dying sway, over our sympathies and affections : 
commanding our smiles and tears; kindling the imagination; 
warming the heart; filling the fancy with beauty; and awing 
the soul with the sublime, the terrible, the powerful, the infinite. 

Ye grand inventions of ancient bards ! ye gay creations of 

2 modern fancy ! ye bright visions ! ye fervid and impassioned 
thoughts ! serve ye all for no better purpose than the pastime 
of an idle hour ? 

3 Ah ! not so : not so. It is yours to stir to the bottom the 
dull and stagnant soul : ye can carry man out of himself and 

4 make him feel his kindred with his whole race : ye can teach 
him to look beyond external and physical nature for enjoyment 
and for power ; ye rouse him from the deep lethargy of sense, 
raise him above " the worthless thing we are," and reveal to 
him his capacity for purer purposes, and a nobler state of being. 

Verplanck. 

Sentence 1st. — Perf. loose decl. in two parts : the first ending with affections, imperf. loose ; 
the second, loose or close as it may be treated. Sentence 2d. — Semi-interrogative : first part com- 
pound compellative exclamatory ; and the second, compound definite compact. The two parts 
relatively form a close sentence. The exclamation points represent commas. Sentence '3d. — A 
compound declarative perfect loose, preceded by the spontaneous exclamation ah ! which is 
here merely the key-note of the sentence. Sentence ith. — Perf. loose decl. : together with sent. 
3d, it may form a double compact : 1st and 2d parts expressed. In which case, there should 
of course be semicolons after the two sos instead of the colon and period, and each so will be 
delivered with the bend. 



SEC. XH. A VEHEMENT ATTACK ON THE ALIEN AND SEDITION LAW. 

But, as if this were not enough, the unfortunate victims of 

1 this law are told, in the next place, that, if they can convince 
the President that his suspicions are unfounded, he may, if he 
pleases, give them a license to stay. But how can they remove 

2 his suspicions, when they know not on what act they were 
founded? how take proof to convince him, when he is not 

3 bound to furnish that on which he proceeds? Miserable 
mockery of justice ! Appoint an arbitrary judge, armed with 



EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 323 

4 legislative and executive powers added to his own ; let him con- 
demn the unheard, the unaccused object of his suspicions ; and 
then, to cover the injustice of the scene, gravely tell him, "You 
ought not to complain ; you need only disprove facts you never 
heard ; remove suspicions that have never been communicated 
to you ; it will be easy to convince your judge, whom you shall 
not approach, that he is tyrannical and unjust ; and when you 
have done this, we give him the power, he had before, to pardon 
you, if he pleases !" Edw. Livingston. 

Sentence 1st. — Mixed sent. " But so — as, then — if— then — if." Sentence 3d. — Simple decl. ex- 
clam. : fragmentary. Sentence 4th. — As a whole, a mixed sentence : a compound declarative 
single compact, third form : correlative words, when — then, in the portion preceding the quota- 
tion : then begins another singie compact with correlative words, therefore — because ; which 
introduces a third, with correlative words, as — so : the whole linked thus : " when you appoint 
— then gravely tell him, therefore you ought not, because, as you need — so it will be easy," &c. 
The second part of this last compact is perfect loose, and concludes with a single compact : 
correlative words, when — then. 



SEC. XIII. EVILS OF THE OLD CONFEDERATION. 

1 Need I call to your remembrance the contrasted scenes of 
which we have been witnesses ? On the glorious conclusion of 

2 our conflict with Britain, what high expectations were formed 
concerning us, by others ! what high expectations did we form 

3 concerning ourselves ! Have those expectations been realized ? 

4 No. 5 What has been the cause ? 6 Did our citizens lose 
1 their perseverance and magnanimity? No. Did they become 

8 insensible of resentment and indignation at any high-handed 
attempt that might have been made to injure or enslave them? 

9 No. 10 What then has been the cause? 11 The truth is, we 
dreaded danger only on one side : this we manfully repelled. 
But on another side, danger, not less formidable, but more 

12 insidious, stole in upon us; and our unsuspicious tempers were 
not sufficiently attentive either to its approach or to its operations. 

13 Those, whom foreign strength could not overpower, have well 
nigh become the victims of internal anarchy. 

14 If we become a little more particular, we shall find that the 
foregoing representation is by no means exaggerated. When 

15 we had baffled all the menaces of foreign power, we neg- 
lected to establish among ourselves a government that could 

16 ensure domestic vigor and stability. What was the conse- 
iVquence? The commencement of peace was the commence- 
ment of every disgrace and distress that could befall a people 
in a peaceful state. Devoid of national power, we could 

18 not prohibit the extravagance of our importations, nor could 
we derive a revenue from their excess. Devoid of national im- 

19 portance, we could not procure for our exports a tolerable sale 
at foreign markets. Devoid of national credit, we saw our 



324 EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 

20 securities melt in the hands of the holders, like snow before the 
sun. Devoid of national dignity, we could not, in some in- 

21 stances, perform our treaties on our part ; and, in other instances, 
we could neither obtain nor compel the performance of them on 

22 the part of others. Devoid of national energy, we could not 
carry into execution our own resolutions, decisions, or laws. 

23 Shall I become more particular still ? 24 The tedious detail 
would disgust me ; nor is it now necessary. Wilson. 

Sentences 4th,7th, 9th. — JVb maybe treated either as a simple decl. sentence, or a compound 
decl. double compact, with the third proposition understood, thus : No, but the reverse. If 
treated as a simp, decl., it will be delivered with perfect close ; but if as a double compact, 
with circumflex, just as if the third proposition was expressed. 

Sentences 19-22. — Each of these is a single compact of the third form ; or the whole may be 
treated as a comp. decl. perf. loose : perhaps it should be. 



SEC. XIV. THE ADVOCATES OF CHARLES I. PROPERLY CHASTISED. 

The advocates of Charles, like the advocates of other male- 

1 factors, against whom overwhelming evidence is produced, gen- 
erally decline all controversy about the facts, and content them- 

2 selves with calling testimony to character. He had so many 
private virtues ! and had James II. no private virtues ? was even 
Oliver Cromwell, his bitterest enemies themselves being judges, 

3 destitute of private virtues ? And what, after all, are the vir- 
tues ascribed to Charles ? A religious zeal, not more sincere 

4 than that of his son, and fully as weak and narrow-minded, and 
a few of the ordinary household decencies, which half the tomb- 

5 stones in England claim for those who lie beneath them. A 

6 good father ! a good husband ! Ample apologies, indeed, for 
fifteen years of persecution, tyranny, and falsehood ! 

7 We charge him with having broken his coronation-oath, and 
we are told that he kept his marriage-vow ! We accuse him of 

8 having given up his people to the merciless inflictions of the most 
hot-headed and hard-heaited of prelates, and the defence is, that 
he took bis little son on his knee and kissed him ! We censure 

9 him for having violated the articles of the Petition of Right, 
after having, for good and valuable considerations, promised to 
observe them, and we are informed that he was accustomed to 
hear prayers at six o'clock in the morning ! It is to such con- 

10 siderations as these, together with his Vandyke dress, his hand- 
some face, and his peaked beard, that he owes, we verily believe, 
most of his popularity with the present generation. 

For ourselves, we own that we do not understand the common 

11 phrase, " a good man, but a bad king;" we can as easily conceive 
a good man and an unnatural father; or a good man and a 
treacherous friend. We cannot, in estimating the character of 



EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 325 

12 an individual, leave out of our consideration his conduct in the 
most important of all human relations ; and if, in that relation, 
we find him to have been selfish, cruel, and deceitful, we shall 
take the liberty to call him a bad man, in spite of all his tem- 
perance at table, and all his regularity at chapel. Macaulay. 

Sentence 'id,— A semi-interrog., with a perf. loose def. interrog. in one part, and a fragmen- 
tary compound close decl. excl. in the other. The complement of the latter supplied, it would 
probably read thus : " It is said that he had," &c. Sentences 7th, 8th and 9th, are respectively 
single compact declar. exclam., of the third form, third var. " If we charge, <fcc, then^ &c, 
" If we accuse, &c, then the defence," &c. " If we censure &c, then we are informed," &c. 
Sentence 11th. — A double compact decl., with the first and second proposition expressed: i. e., 
the negative and the reason for it. 



J 

SEC. XV. IF GOD BE FOR YOU, FEAR NOTHING. 

1 What shall we then say to these things ? 2 If God be for us, 

3 who can be against us? He that spared not his own son, — how ! 

4 shall he not with him, also freely give us all things ! Who shall 

5 lay any thing to the charge of God's elect ? God that justifieth ! 

6 Who is he that condemneth ? Christ that died, yea rather, that 
1 is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God : who also 

8 maketh intercession for us ! Who shall separate us from the 

9 love of Christ ? Tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or 
famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword, as it is written, For 
thy sake we are killed all the day long : we are accounted as 
sheep for the slaughter ! Nay, in all these things we are more 
than conquerors, through him that loved us ; for I am persuaded 

10 that neither death, nor life ; nor angels, nor principalities, nor 
powers ; nor things present, nor things to come ; nor height, nor 
depth ; nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us 
from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. 

Sentence 3d. — This sentence began with the design of being a comp. close declarative ; but 
the author at son breaks that construction and converts the remainder into a definite interrog. 
excl. Sentences 5th, 1th, 9th, are fragmentary definite interrog. excl. Sentence 10th. — Nay is 
here equivalent to " these shall not separate us, &c." : for making it, with the continuation, the 
first and second proposition of a double compact declarative. 



SEC. XVI. IMPORTANT RESULTS FROM THE SUFFERINGS OF THE PILGRIMS. 

From the dark portals of the star-chamber, and in the stern 

1 text of the acts of uniformity, the pilgrims received a commis- 
sion more efficient than any that ever bore the royal seal. Their 
banishment to Holland was fortunate : the decline of their little 
company in the strange land was fortunate : the difficulties 

2 which they experienced in getting the royal consent to banish 
themselves to this wilderness were fortunate : all the tears and 
heart-breakings of that memorable parting at Delfthaven, had 

28 



326 EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 

the happiest influence on the rising destinies of New England. 
These rough touches of fortune brushed off the light, uncertain, 
selfish spirits : they made it a grave, solemn, self-denying expe- 
dition, and required of those who engaged in it to be so too : 

3 they cast a broad shadow of thought and seriousness over the 
cause ; and if this sometimes deepened into melancholy and 
bitterness, can we find no apology for such a human weak- 
ness ? 

Their trials of wandering and exile, of the ocean, the winter, 

4 the wilderness and the savage foe, were the final assurances of 
success. It was these that put far away from our fathers' 

5 cause, all patrician softness : all hereditary claims to pre-emi- 
nence. No effeminate nobility crowded into the dark and 
austere ranks of the pilgrims ; no Carr nor Villiers would lead 
on the ill-provided band of the despised Puritans ; no well- 
endowed clergy were on the alert to quit their cathedrals, 
and set up a pompous hierarchy in the frozen wilderness ; no 

6 craving governors were anxious to be sent over to our cheerless 
El Dorados of ice and of snow ; no ; they could not say they 
had encouraged, patronized, or helped the pilgrims ; their own 
cares, their own labors, their own counsels, their own blood 
contrived all, achieved all, bore all, sealed all. They could not 
afterwards fairly pretend to reap where they had not strewn ; 
and as our fathers reared this broad and solid fabric with pains 

7 and watchfulness, unaided, barely tolerated, it did not fall when 
the favor, which had always been withholden, was changed in- 
to wrath : when the arm which had never supported, was 
raised to destroy. 

Methinks I see it now : that one solitary, adventurous vessel, 

8 the Mayflower of a forlorn hope, freighted with the prospects of 
a future state, and bound across the unknown sea. I behold it 

9 pursuing, with a thousand misgivings, the uncertain, tedious 
voyage. Suns rise and set, and weeks and months pass, and 

10 winter surprises them on the deep, but brings them not the 
sight of the wished-for shore. I see them now, scantily sup- 
plied with provisions, crowded almost to suffocation in their 

1 1 ill-stored prison, delayed by calms, pursuing a circuitous route ; 
and now driven in fury, before the raging tempest, on the high 
and giddy waves. The awful voice of the storm howls through 
the rigging : the laboring masts seem straining from their base : 

12 the dismal sound of the pumps is heard: the ship leaps, as it 
were, madly from billow to billow : the ocean breaks and settles 
with ingulfing floods over the floating deck, and beats with 
deadening, shivering weight, against the staggered vessel. I 
see them, escaped from these perils, pursuing their all but des- 



EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 327 

perate undertaking, and landed at last, after a five months' pas- 

13 sage, on the ice-clad rocks of Plymouth : weak and weary from 
the voyage, poorly armed, scantily provisioned : depending on 
the charity of their ship-master for a draught of beer on board ; 
drinking nothing but water on shore, without shelter, without 
means, surrounded by hostile tribes. 

Shut now the volume of history, and tell me, on any princi- 

14 pie of human probability, what shall be the fate of this handful 
of adventurers. Tell me, man of military science ! in how 

15 many months were they all swept off by the thirty savage 
tribes, enumerated within the early limits of New England? 
Tell me, politician ! how long did the shadow of a colony, on 

16 which your conventions and treaties had not smiled, languish on 
the distant coast ? Student of "history ! compare for me the 

17 baffled projects, the deserted settlements, the abandoned adven- 
tures of other times, and find the parallel of this. Was it the 
winter's storm, beating upon the houseless heads of women and 
children, was it hard labor and spare meals, was it disease, was 
it the tomahawk, was it the deep malady of a blighted hope, a 

18 ruined enterprise and a broken heart, aching in its last moments 
at the recollection of the loved and left, beyond the sea, was it 
some, or all of these united, that hurried this forsaken company 
to their melancholy fate ? And is it possible that neither of 
these causes, that not all combined, were able to blast this bud 
of hope ? is it possible, that from a beginning so feeble, so frail, 

19 so worthy, not so much of admiration as of pity, there has gone 
forth a progress so steady, a growth so wonderful, an expan- 
sion so ample, a reality so important, a promise, yet to be ful- 
filled, so glorious ? . Everett. 

Sentence 6th. — A compound declarative double compact, with the first proposition, consist- 
ing of a series of members, and the third, comprising a compound declarative perfect loose. 
No is here somewhat singular in having its equivalent in the member which follows, while it 
is itself the equivalent of all that precede. (See Classif., Double Compact, 7, General Note, and 
Rule VIII. 3.) Sentence VSth. — The third member should be treated as a single compact, 
third form, and of course delivered with the bend at board. Sentences 15th, 16th. — Semi- 
interrogative. The two parts of each relatively form a loose sentence. Sentence 18£/t. — Ob- 
serve the delivery of the successive members in the first part of this interrogative. (See 
Rule X.) 



SEC. XVII. SORROW FOR THE DEAD. 

1 Sorrow for the dead is the only sorrow from which we refuse 
to be divorced. Every other wound we seek to heal ; every 

2 other affliction to forget ; but this wound we consider it a duty 
to keep open : this affliction we cherish and brood over in soli- 
tude. Where is the mother that would willingly forget the 
infant that perished like a blossom from her arms, though every 
recollection is a pang ? where is the child that would willingly 



328 EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 

forget the most tender of parents, though to remember be but 

3 to lament ? who, even in the hour of agony, would forget the 
friend over whom he mourns ? who, even when the tomb is 
closing upon the remains of her he most loved, when he feels his 
heart, as it were, crushed in the closing of its portal, would 
accept consolation that was to be bought by forgetfulness ? 

4 No ; the love which survives the tomb is one of the noblest 
attributes of the soul. If it has its woes, it has likewise its de- 
lights ; and when the overwhelming burst of grief is calmed 

5 into the gentle tear of recollection, when the sudden anguish 
and the convulsive agony over the present ruins of all that we 
most loved, is softened away into pensive meditation on all that 
it was in the days of its loveliness, who would root out such a 
sorrow from the heart ? Though it may sometimes throw a 

6 passing cloud even over the bright hour of gayety, or spread a 
deeper sadness over the hour of gloom, yet who would exchange 
it even for the song of pleasure, or the burst of revelry ? No; 

7 there is a voice from the tomb sweeter than song : there is a 
recollection of the dead to which we turn even from the charms 

8 of the living. Oh, the grave ! the grave ! 9 It buries every 
error : covers every defect : extinguishes every resentment. 

10 From its peaceful bosom spring none but fond regrets and 
tender recollections. Who can look down upon the grave even 

11 of an enemy, and not feel a compunctious throb, that ever he 
should have warred with the poor handful of earth that lies 
mouldering before him ! 

12 But the grave of those we loved — what a place for medita- 
tion! There it is that we call up in long review the whole 
history of virtue and gentleness, and the thousand endearments 
lavished upon us almost unheeded in the daily intercourse of 
intimacy : there it is that we dwell upon the tenderness, the 
solemn, awful tenderness of the parting scene ; the bed of death, 

13 with all its stifled griefs; its noiseless attendance; its mute, 
watchful assiduities ; the last testimonies of expiring love ; the 
feeble, fluttering, thrilling, (Oh ! how thrilling !) pressure of the 
hand ; the last fond look of the glazing eye, turning upon us 
even from the threshold of existence ; the faint, faltering ac- 
cents struggling in death to give one more assurance of affection ! 

14 Aye, go to the grave of buried love, and meditate ! There 

15 settle the account with thy conscience for every past benefit 
unrequited, every past endearment unregarded, of that being, 
who can never, never, never return to be soothed by thy con- 
trition ! 

If thou art a child, and hast ever added a sorrow to the soul, 
or a furrow to the silvered brow of an affectionate parent ; if 



EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 329 

thou art a husband, and hast ever caused the fond bosom that 
ventured its whole happiness in thy arms, to doubt one moment 
of thy kindness or thy truth ; if thou art a friend, and hast 
ever wronged, in thought, word, or deed, the spirit that gener- 
ously confided in thee ; if thou art a lover, and hast ever given 

16 one unmerited pang to that true heart that now lies cold and 
still beneath thy feet; then be sure that every unkind look, 
every ungracious word, every ungentle action, will come throng- 
ing back upon thy memory, and knocking dolefully at thy soul : 
then be sure that thou wilt lie down sorrowing and repentant 
on the grave, and utter the unheard groan, and pour the un- 
availing tear : more deep, more bitter, because unheard and 
unavailing. 

Then weave thy chaplet of flowers, and strew the beauties of 
nature about the grave ; console thy broken spirit, if thou canst, 

\1 with these tender, yet futile tributes of regret ; but take warning 
by the bitterness of this thy contrite affliction over the dead, 
and be more faithful and affectionate in the discharge of thy 
duties to the living. Irving. 

Sentence 8th— Compound fragmentary perf. loose indef. interrog. exclam. : Oh ! what a place 
is the grave ! what a place is the grave ! 



SEC. XVHI. A POLITICAL PAUSE. 

1 " But we must pause !" says the honorable gentleman. What ! 

2 must the bowels of Great Britain be torn out, her best blood 
spilt, her treasure wasted, that you may make an experiment ? 

3 Put yourselves, oh ! that you would put yourselves, on the 
field of battle, and learn to judge of the sort of horrors that 
you excite. In former wars, a man might, at least, have some 
feeling, some interest, that served to balance in his mind the 

4 impressions which a scene of carnage and of death must inflict ; 
but if a man were present now at the field of slaughter, and 
were to inquire for what they were fighting, " Fighting !" would 
be the answer ; "■ they are not fighting ; they are pausing." 

5 Why is that man expiring ? why is that other writhing with 
agony ? what means this implacable fury ? The answer must 

6 be, " You are quite wrong, sir : you deceive yourself : they are 
not fighting ; do not disturb them ; they are merely pausing ! 

7 This man is not expiring with agony ; that man is not dead ; he 
is only pausing ! Lord help you, sir : they are not angry with 

8 one another ; they have now no cause of quarrel ; but their 
country thinks there should be a pause ! All that you see, sir, 

9 is nothing like fighting ; there is no harm, nor cruelty, nor 

28* 



330 EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 

bloodshed in it, whatever ; it is nothing more than a political 
pause ! It is merely to try an experiment, to see whether 

10 Bonaparte will not behave himself better than heretofore ; and 
in the mean time we have agreed to a pause, in pure friend- 
ship !" 

11 And is this the way, sir, that you are to show yourselves the 
advocates of order ? You take up a system calculated to un- 
civilize the world, to destroy order, to trample on religion, to 

12 stifle in the heart, not merely the generosity of noble sentiment, 
but the affections of social life ; and in the prosecution of this 
system, you spread terror and devastation all around you. 

Fox. 

The double compacts in this piece deserve particular attention. The twelfth sentence is a 
single compact declarative, third ibrm. 



SEC. XIX. A PART OF EMMETTS DEFENCE. 

1 I am charged with being an emissary of France ! 2 An emis- 
3 sary of France ! And for what end ? 4 It is alleged that I 

5 wished to sell the independence of my country ! And for what 

6 end ? Was this the object of my ambition ? and is this the 
mode by which a tribunal of justice reconciles contradictions? 

7 No ; I am no emissary ; and my ambition was to hold a place 
among the deliverers of my country : not in power, nor in profit, 

8 but in the glory of the achievement ! Sell my country's inde- 

9 pendence to France ! And for what ? 10 Was it for a change of 

11 masters ? No, but for ambition ! 0, my country, was it personal 

12 ambition that could influence me? had it been the soul of my 
actions, could I not by my education and fortune, by the rank 
and consideration of my family, have placed myself among the 

13 proudest of my oppressors? My country was my idol ; to it I 
sacrificed every selfish, every endearing sentiment; and for it I 
now offer up my life. 

14 God ! — No, my lord ! I acted as an Irishman, determined 
on delivering my country from the yoke of a foreign and unrelent- 

15 ing tyranny, and from the more galling yoke of a domestic 
faction, which is its joint partner and perpetrator in the parri- 
cide, for the ignominy of existing with an exterior of splendor 

16 and of conscious depravity. It was the wish of my heart to 
extricate my country from this doubly-riveted despotism : I 
wished to place her independence beyond the reach of any 
power on earth : I wished to exalt her to that proud station in 
the world. — Emmett. 

Sentence 2d. — A fragmentary simple decl. exclam., like the preceding, but delivered with 
increased surprise and contempt: it may be treated as a def. interrog. excl. and delivered with 



EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 331 

the rising slide : in this case, however, surprise will be the emotion expressed : not contempt ; 
Which I think was the one felt. Sent. 8th. — A simple def. interrog. exclam. Sent. lith. — 
This begins with a compellative as if a prayer was intended, but breaks off, and proceeds with 
a double compact. 



SEC. XX. THE DEATH OF ALTAMONT. 

1 The sad evening before the death of this noble youth, I was 

2 with him. No one was there but his physician, and an intimate 

3 friend, whom he loved and whom he had ruined. At my com- 

4 ing in, he said, You and the physician are come too late. I 

5 have neither life nor hope. You both aim at miracles : you 
would raise the dead. 

6 Heaven, I said, is merciful — 

7 Or I could not have been thus guilty. 8 What has it done 
9 to bless and to save me ! I have been too strong for Omnipo- 

10 tence! I plucked down ruin! 

11 I said, the blessed Redeemer — 

12 Hold ! hold ! you wound me ! 13 This is the rock on which 
I split : I denied his name. 

14 Refusing to hear any thing from me, or take any thing from 
the physician, he lay silent, as far as sudden darts of pain would 

15 permit, till the clock struck. Then with vehemence — Oh, time ! 
time ! it is fit thou shouldst thus strike thy murderer to the 

16 heart. How art thou fled forever ! 17 A month ! 18 Oh, for 

19 a single week ! I ask not for years, though an age were too 
little for the much I have to do. 

20 On my saying, we could not do too much ; that heaven was 
a blessed place — 

21 So much the worse. 22 'Tis lost! 'tis lost! — 23 Heaven 
is to me the severest part of hell ! 

24 Soon after, I proposed prayer. 

25 Pray you that can. 26 I never prayed. 27 1 cannot pray, 
28 nor need I. Is not heaven on my side already ? 29 It closes 

with my conscience : its severest strokes but second my own. 
His friend being much touched, even to tears, at this, (who 

30 could forbear? I could not,) with a most affectionate look, he 

31 said, Keep those tears for thyself. I have undone thee. 

32 Dost weep for me? 33 That's cruel. 34 What can pain me 
more ? 

35 Here his friend, too much affected, would have left him. 

36 No ; stay. 37 Thou still may est hope, therefore hear me. 

38 How madly have I talked ! how madly hast thou listened and 

39 believed ! But look on my present state, as a full answer to 
thee and to myself. This body is all weakness and pain, but my 

40 soul, as if strung up by torment to greater strength and spirit, 



332 EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 

is full powerful to reason : full mighty to sutler. And that 
which thus triumphs within the jaws of mortality, is doubtless 

41 immortal ; and as for a Deity, nothing less than an Almighty 
could inflict what I feel. 

I was about to congratulate this passive, involuntary confes- 

42 sor, on his asserting the two prime articles of his creed, extort- 
ed by the rack of nature, when he thus very passionately : No ; 
no ! let me speak on ; I have not long to speak. — My much- 

43 injured friend ! my soul, as my body, lies in ruins ; in scattered 
fragments of thought : remorse for the past, throws my thoughts 

44 on the future. Worse dread of the future, strikes it back on 

45 the past. I turn and turn, and find no ray. Didst thou feel 

46 half the mountain that is on me, thou wouldst struggle with the 
martyr for his stake, and bless heaven for the flame : that is not 
an everlasting flame : that is not an unquenchable fire. 

47 How were we struck ! 48 Yet, soon after, still more. With 

49 what an eye of distraction, what a face of despair, he cried out, 
My principles have poisoned my friend ; my extravagance has 
beggared my boy ; my unkindness has murdered my wife ! — 

50 And is there another hell ? Oh ! thou blasphemed, yet most 

51 indulgent, Lord God ! hell itself is a refuge, if it hide me from 
thy frown ! 

52 Soon after, his understanding failed. His terrified imagina-/ 

53 tion uttered horrors not to be repeated, or ever forgot ; and ere 
the sun rose, the gay, young, noble, ingenious, accomplished, and 
most wretched Altamont expired. Young. 

Sentence 6th, 1th. — They make together a single compact, of the second form. 

Sentence 11th, 18th. — Fragmentary simple indefinite interrogative exclamatory. "What 
•would I not give for," or " how 1 wish lor," understood belore each. Sent. 26th. — Double 
compact declarative : " Go not, but stay." Sent. 31th. — Single compact declarative, second 
form: correlative words, because — therefore. Sent. Aid. — "No, no, but let," Ate; that is, "do 
not interrupt me, do not interrupt me, but," &c. The sentence is broken off at speak, but the 
continuation, '■'for or because my moments are numbered," is obvious. Sent. 51st. — The 
compound compellative here has, it will be observed, a single compact construction, " though 
thou blasphemed, yet most," &c. : the sentence which follows is a single compact of the 
second form. . 



SEC. XXI. THE DEATH OF HAMILTON. 

1 " How are the mighty fallen !" 2 And, regardless as we are 
of vulgar deaths, shall not the fall of the mighty affect us ? 

3 A short time since, and he, who is the occasion of our sor- 

4 rows, was the ornament of his country. He stood on an emi- 

5 nence, and glory covered him. From that eminence he has 

6 fallen : suddenly, forever, fallen. His intercourse with the 
living world is now ended ; and those who would hereafter find 
him, must seek him in the grave. There, cold and lifeless, is 
the heart which just now was the seat of friendship ; there, 



EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 333 

7 dim and sightless is the eye, whose radiant and enlivening orb 
beamed with intelligence ; and there, closed forever, are those 
lips, on whose persuasive accents we have so often, and so lately 
hung with transport ! From the darkness which rests upon his 

8 tomb, there proceeds, methinks, a light in which it is clearly 
seen, that those gaudy objects, which men pursue, are only 

9 phantoms. In this light how dimly shines the splendor of 
victory : how humble appears the majesty of grandeur ! The 

10 bubble, which seemed to have so much solidity, has burst; and 
we again see, that all below the sun is vanicy. 

True, the funeral eulogy has been pronounced, the sad and 
solemn procession has moved, the badge of mourning has al- 
ii ready been decreed, and presently the sculptured marble will 
lift up its front, proud to perpetuate the name of Hamilton, 
and rehearse to the passing traveller his virtues ; (just tributes 
of respect, and to the living useful ;) but to him, mouldering in 

12 his narrow and humble habitation, what are they? How vain! 
how unavailing ! 

13 Approach, and behold, while I lift from his sepulchre its 

14 covering ! Ye admirers of his greatness ! ye emulous of his 

15 talents and his fame, approach and behold him now. How 

16 pale ! how silent ! No martial bands admire the adroitness 
of his movements ; no fascinating throng weep, and melt, and 

17 tremble at his eloquence! Amazing change! A shroud! a 

18 coffin! a narrow, subterraneous cabin! — this is all that now 
remains of Hamilton ! and is this all that remains of Hamilton ? 

19 During a life so transitory, what lasting monument, then, can 
our fondest hopes erect ! 

20 My brethren ! we stand on the borders of an awful gulf, 
which is swallowing up all things human ; and is there, amidst 
this universal wreck, nothing stable, nothing abiding, nothing 

21 immortal, on which poor, frail, dying man can fasten? Ask 
the hero, ask the statesman, whose wisdom you have been 

22 accustomed to revere, and he will tell you. He will tell you, 
did I say ? He has already told you, from his death-bed ; and 
his illumined spirit, still whispers from the heavens, with well- 

23 known eloquence, the solemn admonition : " Mortals hastening 
to the tomb, and once the companions of my pilgrimage, take 
warning and avoid my errors; cultivate the virtues I have 
recommended ; choose the Saviour I have chosen ; live disin- 
terestedly ; live for immortality ; and would you rescue any 
thing from final dissolution, lay it up in God."— President Nott. 

Sentence 2d. — A semi-interrogative : the parts connected compactly : though — yet, the cor- 
relative words. 

Sentence 3d. — A single compact, third form. "When a short time since was, thenP 
Sentence Wth. — A single compact, second form, correlative words, indeed — but, in the first 



334 EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 

part ; in the second, simple indefinite interrogative : the whole a semi-interrogative : the parta 
connected closely. Sentence \Wi. — A double compact exclamatory with the first proposition, 
comprising two members, only expressed. Sentence \lth. — A fragmentary simple declarative 
exclamatory. Sentence \8th. — A broken close declarative exclamatory. Sentence '2\st. — A 
compound declarative single compact, third form: correlative words, if— then. 



SEC. XXII. BURNING OF THE FAME, AND ESCAPE OF THE PASSENGERS. 

1 We embarked on the 2d inst. and sailed at daylight for Eng- 
land, from the East Indies, with every prospect of a quick and 

2 prosperous passage. The ship was every thing we could wish ; 
and, having closed my charge here, much to my satisfaction, it 

3 was one of the happiest days of my life. We were, perhaps, 
too happy ; for in the evening came a sad reverse. Sophia had 

4 just gone to bed. and I had thrown off half my clothes, when 
a cry of Fire ! — Fire ! — roused us from our calm content ; and 

5 in five minutes the whole ship was in flames ! I ran to examine 
whence the flames principally issued, and found that the fire had 

6 its origin immediately under our cabin. — Down with the boats ! 
1 —Where is Sophia?— 8 Here.— 9 The children?— 10 Here.— 

11 A rope to the side ! — 12 Lower Lady Raffles. — 13 Give her to 
14 me, says one. — I'll take her, says the captain. — 15 Throw the 

16 gunpowder overboard. — It cannot be got at : it is in the maga- 

17 zine, close to the fire. — Stand clear of the powder. 18 Scuttle 
19 the water-cask. — Water! water! — 20 Where's Sir Stamford? 

21 Come into the boat : Nikon ! Nilson ! come into the boat. — 

22 Push off! push off! 23 Stand clear of the after part of the 
ship. 

24 All this passed much quicker than I can write it. We pushed 

25 off; and as we did so, the flames burst out of our cabin windows, 
and the whole after part of the ship was in flames. 



SEC. XXIH. OUR WISHES HELP TO DECErVE US. 

1 Baltimore. What were you laughing at ? 

Peter. Only, sir, at Squire Freeman, (he : he : he !) who 

2 was riding up the back lane, a little while ago, on his new crop- 
eared hunter, as fast as he could canter, with all the skirts of 
his coat flapping about him, for all the world like a clucking 
hen upon a sow's back — He : he : he ! — 

3 Bait. Thou art pleasant, Peter ; and what then ? 

Pet. When just turning the corner, your honor, as it might 

4 be so, my mother's brown calf (bless its snout ! I shall love it 
for it, as long as I live) set its face through the hedge, and said 
" Mow !" 

5 Bait. And he fell : did he ? 



EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 335 

6 Pet. Lord, yes, your honor ! into a good soft bed of all 
the rotten garbage of the village. 

7 Bait. And you saw this : did you ? 

8 Pet. yes, your honor ! as plain as the nose on my face. 

9 Bait. Ha : ha : ha : ha : ha ! and you really saw it ? 

10 David. (Aside.) I wonder my master can demean himself so 
as to listen to that knave's tales ; I'm sure he was proud enough 
once. 

11 Bait. (Still laughing.) You really saw it ? 

12 Pet. Ay, your honor ! and many more than me saw it. 

1 3 Bait. And there were a number of people to look at him too ? 

14 Pet. Oh ! your honor ! all the rag-tag of the parish were 
grinning at him. 

15 Bait. Ha: ha: ha: ha: ha! this is excellent ! ha: ha: ha! 

16 He would shake himself but ruefully before them ? (Still 
laughing violently.) 

17 Pet. Ay, sir: he shook the wet straws and the withered 

18 turnip-tops from his' back. It would have done your heart 
good to have seen him. 

19 Dav. Nay, you know well enough, you do, that there is 
nothing but a bank of dry sand in that corner. (Indignantly 
to Peter.) 

20 Bait. (Impatiently to David) Poo ! silly fellow ! it is the 

21 dirtiest nook in the village. — And he rose and shook himself: 
ha : ha : ha ! I did not know that thou wert such a humorous 

22 fellow, Peter: here is money for thee to drink the brown calf's 
health. 

23 Pet. Ay, your honor ! for certain he shall have a noggen. 

24 Dav. (Aside.) To think now that he should demean him- 
self so ! Joanna Baillie. 

Sent. 10th. — Sing, compact : therefore— for : the second part begins another, of which, one 
part only is expressed. Sent. 19th. — Therefore nay, (it would not have done his heart good,) 
for you know, &c. Double compact : the second part begins another sentence which re- 
mains unfinished. 

Sent. 24. — Fragmentary declarative close exclamatory sentence, with something like "ia 
painful'' understood at the end. 



SEC. XXIV. A CURTAIN LECTURE OF MRS. CAUDLE. 

1 Bah ! that's the third umbrella gone since Christmas. 2 What 

3 were you to do ! Why, let him go home in the rain, to be sure. 

4 I'm very certain there was nothing about him that could spoil. 

5 — Take cold, indeed ! 6 He doesn't look like one of the sort to 

7 take cold. Besides, he'd have better taken cold than taken our 

8 umbrella. — Do you hear the rain, Mr. Caudle ? ,91 say, do you 
10 hear the rain ? And as I'm alive, if it isn't St. Swithin's day ! 



336 EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 

11 Do you hear It against the windows ? 12 Nonsense : you don't 

impose upon me ; you can't be asleep with such a shower as 

13 that! Do you hear it, I say? 14 Oh! you do hear it! — 

15 Well, that's a pretty flood, I think, to last for six weeks ; and no 

16 stirring all the time out of the house. Pooh ! don't think me a 

17 fool, Mr. Caudle ; dont insult me ; he return the umbrella ! Any- 

18 body would think you were born yesterday. As if anybody 

19 ever did return an umbrella ! There : do you hear it ? 20 Worse 

21 and worse. Cats and dogs, and for six weeks : always six 
weeks ; and no umbrella ! 

22 I should like to know how the children are to go to school 

23 to-morrow. They shan't go through such weather ; I am de- 

24 termined. No ; they shall stop at home and never learn any 
thing, (the blessed creatures !) sooner than go and get wet ! And 

25 when they grow up, 1 wonder who they'll have to thank for know- 

26 ing nothing : who, indeed, but their father. People who can't 
feel for their own children ought never to be fathers. 

27 But I know why you lent the umbrella : oh ! yes, I know very 

28 well. I was going out to tea at dear mother's to-morrow : you 

29 knew that, and you did it on purpose. Don't tell me ; you hate 
me to go there, and take every mean advantage to hinder me. 

30 But don't you think it, Mr. Caudle ; no, sir ; if it comes down in 

31 buckets full, I'll go all the more. No ; and I won't have a cab ! 

32 Where do you think the money's to come from ? 33 You've got 

34 nice high notions at that club of yours? A cab, indeed! 

35 Cost me sixteen-pence, at least : sixteen-pence ! two-and-eight- 

36 pence ; for there's back again. Cabs, indeed ! I should like 

37 to know who's to pay for 'em; for I'm sure you can't, if you 
go on as you do, throwing away your property, and beggaring 
your children, buying umbrellas ! 

38 Do you hear the rain, Mr. Caudle ? 39 I say, do you hear 

40 it? But I don't care — I'll go to mother's to-morrow — I will ; 
and what's more I'll walk every step of the way ; and you know 

41 that will give me my death. Don't call me a foolish woman ; 

42 it's you that's the foolish man. You know I can't wear clogs ; 
and with no umbrella, the wet's sure to give me a cold : it al- 

43 ways does : but what do you care for that ? Nothing at all. 

44 I may be laid up for what you care, as I dare say I shall ; and 

45 a pretty doctor's bill there'll be. I hope there will. 46 It will 

47 teach you to lend your umbrellas again. I shouldn't wonder if 
I caught my death : yes, and that's what you lent the umbrella 

48 for. Of course ! 

49 Nice clothes I'll get, too, trapesing through weather like this. 

50 My gown and bonnet will be spoiled quite. 51 Needn't I wear 
52 'em then ? Indeed, Mr. Caudle, I shall wear 'em. 53 No, sir ; 



EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 337 

I'm not going out a dowdy to please you or anybody else. 

54 Gracious knows ! it isn't often that I step over the threshold ; — 
indeed, I might as well be a slave at once : better, I should say ; 
but when I do go out, Mr. Caudle, I choose to go as a lady. 

55 Oh ! that rain — if it isn't enough to break in the windows. 

56 Ugh ! I look forward with dread for to-morrow ! 57 How I 
am to go to mother's, I'm sure I can't tell, but if I die, I'll do 

58 it. — No, sir; I won't borrow an umbrella: no; and you shan't 

59 buy one. ( With great emphasis.) Mr. Caudle, if you bring home 
another umbrella, I'll throw it in the street. 

60 Ha ! And it was only last week I had a new nozzle put to 

61 that umbrella. I'm sure if I'd have known as much as I do 

62 now, it might have gone without one. Paying for new nozzles 

63 for other people to laugh at you ! Oh ! it's all very well for 

64 you ; you can go to sleep. You've no thought for your poor 
patient wife, and your own dear children ; you think of nothing 
but lending umbrellas ! 

65 Men, indeed ! — call themselves lords of creation ! pretty lords, 
when they can't even take care of an umbrella ! 

I know that walk to-morrow will be the death of me, but 

66 that's what you want : then you may go to your club, and do 
as you like ; and then nicely my poor dear children will be used ; 

67 but then, sir, then you'll be happy. Oh ! don't tell me ! I 
know you will : else you'd never have lent the umbrella ! 

68 You have to go on Thursday about that summons ; and, of 

69 course, you can't go. No, indeed : you don't go without the 

70 umbrella. You may lose the debt for what I care — it won't be 
so much as spoiling your clothes — better lose it ; people deserve 
to lose debts who lend umbrellas ! 

71 And I should like to know how I'm to go to mother's wit&h 

72 out the umbrella. Oh ! don't tell me that I said I would go ; 

73 that's nothing to do with it : nothing at all. She'll think I'm 
neglecting her ; and the little money we're to have, we shan't 
have at all : — because we've no umbrella. 

The children, too ! — (dear things ! — ) they'll be sopping wet ; 

74 for they shan't stay at home ; they shan't lose their learning ; 

75 it's all their father will leave them, I'm sure. — But they shall 
go to school. Don't tell me they shouldn't ; (you are so aggra- 

76 vating, Caudle, you'd spoil the temper of an angel ;) they shall 
go to school : mark that ; and if they get their deaths of cold, 
it's not my fault ; I didn't lend the umbrella. 

" Here," says Caudle, in his manuscript, " I fell asleep and 

77 dreamed that the sky was turned into green calico, with whale- 
bone ribs : that, in fact, the whole world revolved under a tre- 
mendous umbrella !" 

29 



338 EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 

Sentence 2d.— Mr. Caudle is supposed to have asked here, " What he should have done/' 
Mrs. C. repeats his words as if she had not heard distinctly ; and oi course her question takes 
the rising slide. (See Rule III. Ezcep.) Sentence Gth. — The first part of a decl. double com- 
pact: the second part understood: " but the reverse." Sentence ~th. — The first part of a sin- 
gle compact, itself compact. Therefore — because, the correlative words. " Because we shall 
want it ourselves" 1 is probably the reason in the mind of the speaker. Sent. Qth and 13th. — 
These being repetitions of the def. interrog., take the downward slide. Sentence 12th. — 
" Therefore you don't, because therefore you can't [; because it makes too much noise."] Sen- 
tence loth. — w> As it is well that you hear, so th;;t*s a pretty flood, &c." Sentence 16th. — Mr. 
C. is supposed to have said the umbrella would be returned. A double compact declar. excl. : 
thus made out. " Don't think me fool enough to believe it ; don't insult my understand- 
ing by calling on me to believe it ; for he will n> ver return the umbrella." The second propo- 
sition is virtually negative, though it has an affirmative form. Sentence 21st. — u It rains cats 
and dogs, and so it will rain for six weeks ;" that is, M as it rains, so it will rain, &c." Sen- 
tence 23d. — A double compact, with the first and second proposition expressed : " They shall not, 
&.C., for on that I'm determined." Sentence 2ith. — They shall not. <fcc, but they shall, &c. Sen- 
tence 25th. — Who ungrammatically used for whom. Compound decl. imperf. loose. Sentence 
29th. — Very much abbreviated. M Dont tell me that, for it is not true: you hate, &c." Sen- 
tence 30th. — " But don't you think it : no, sir ; for if it, &e." Sentence 31st. — kk Not only so, indeed, 
but I wont have a cab .'" Sentence 33d. — An indirect interrogative, first kind. Sentence 31th. — 
Indirect semi-interrogative exclam. Sentence AUth. — Extremely abbreviated and fragmentary 
again. " But yet I don't care ; [if it does rain :] yet I will go, &.C., [if it does ram:] yet I Mill, 
[if it does rain; &c."] Sentence 41s£. — " Therefore don't because it's you, &c." Sentence 42d. 
— The first part of this semi-interrog. is a fragment, double compact, with the first proposition 
only expressed : the second, or the reason for the first being understood. Sentence 12d. — 
" Therefore don't, for thafs, &c." 



SEC. XXV. DISHONORABLE MEANS TO SUCCESS, NEVER TO BE EMPLOYED. 

1 Free. How now, Jenkinson? 2 Things go on prosperously, 
I hope ? 

3 Jen. Sir, I am concerned — or, indeed, sorry — that is to say, 
I wish I could have the satisfaction to say that they do. 

4 Free. What say you ? 5 Sorry and satisfied ? You are a 
6 smooth spoken man, Mr. Jenkinson ; but tell me the worst at 
1 once. I thought I had been pretty sure of it, as the poll stood 

this morning ? 

8 Jen. It would have given me great pleasure, sir, to have 
confirmed that opinion ; but unfortunately for you, and unpleas- 
antly for myself — 

9 Free. Tut ; tut ! 10 Speak faster, man ! 11 What is it ? 
Jen. An old gentleman from Ensford, who formerly re- 
ceived favors from Mrs. Baltimore's father, has come many a 

12 mile across the country, out of pure good- will, to vote for him, 
with ten or twelve distant voters at his heels ; and this, I am 
free to confess, is a thing that was never taken into our calcu- 
lation. 

13 Free. That was very wrong, though ; we should have taken 

14 every thing into our calculation. Shall I lose it, think you ? 

15 I would rather lose ten thousand pounds. 

16 Jen. A smaller sum than that, I am almost sure — that is to 
say, I think I may have the boldness to promise, would secure 
it to you. 

17 Free. How so? 



EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 339 

18 Jen. Mr. Baltimore, you know, has many unpleasant claims 
upon him. 

19 Free, Debts, you mean ; but what of that ? 

Jen. Only that I can venture to assure you, many of his 

20 creditors would have the greatest pleasure in life in obliging 
me ; and when you have bought up their claims, it will be a 
very simple matter just to have him laid fast for a little while. 

21 The disgrace of that situation will effectually prevent the last 

22 days of the poll from preponderating in his favor. It is the 
easiest thing in the world. 

23 Free. Is that your scheme ? 24 fie : fie ! 25 The rudest- 
tongued lout in the parish would have blushed to propose it. 

26 Let me lose it then! 27 To be a member of Parliament, and 
28 not an honest man ! — fie : fie : fie ! Joanna Baillie. 

Attention should be given in the delivery of this piece to the spontaneous exclams., and the 
indirect interrogatives. Sent. 4th is an example of the inversion of an indefinite interrog. slide. 
(See Rule III.) Sent. 13th. — Yet that, &c, though he had received favors, &c. 



SEC. XXVI. NOTICE OF A MORTGAGE SALE. 

1 Mortgage Sale. Mortgagors, Amos Ives, Anna his wife 
and Enos Ives ; Mortgagee, Philo Gridley ; Mortgage, dated 
April 1st, 1843, to secure the payment of $2,027 48, with in- 

2 terest : recorded as against Amos and Enos Ives, in the Clerk's 
office of Oneida county on the 16th day of May, 1843, in Book 
No. 52 of Mortgages, at pages 88, 89 and 90: recorded as 
against Anna, wife of Amos aforesaid, in the Clerk's office 
aforesaid, on the 7th day of June, 1845, at two o'clock, P. M. 
Amount claimed to be due at the time of the first publication of 

3 this notice, $2,027 48, and the interest thereon from the date 
of said mortgage. This mortgage is, however, a collateral se- 
curity to another mortgage, dated October 30th, 1841, by said 
Amos and Anna Ives, to E. and A. L. Collins, and now held by 

4 said Gridley ; on which is due $4,699 52, and annual interest 
from April 1st, 1842 ; so that the sum, really to be raised on 
this mortgage, will be the amount of deficiency upon the sale 
of the premises mortgaged to said E. and A. L. Collins. 
Premises as described in said mortgage: "All those certain 
pieces of land, lying in New Hartford, Oneida county, and be- 
ing parts of lot No. 34, in the 7th Grand Division of Cox's 
Patent : the first of said pieces, containing about ninety acres, 

5 more or less, and bounded north by lands formerly owned by 
Oliver Collins, and now by Amos Ives ; on the east by lands of 
E. B. Sherman, and also by lands of Abel Wilcox and Timothy 
Wilcox ; on the south by the great western turnpike ; and on 



340 EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 

the west by land of Salmon Lusk. And the other piece, con- 
taining about thirty-five acres, is bounded on the north by lands 

6 owned by Thomas Palmer, and by the Clinton road ; east by 
lands of Lewis Sherrill, and south by Lewis Sherrill, and west 
by lands of Thomas Palmer." By virtue of a power of sale 
contained in said mortgage, the subscriber will sell the two 

7 aforesaid mortgaged parcels of land, separately, on the 5th day 
of September next, at 2 o'clock, P. M., at the Hotel now kept 

8 by N. Porter, in the town and village of New Hartford. Dated 
June 9th, 1845. P. G RIDLEY, Mortgagee. 

J. G. Co ye, Att'y. 

Sent. 1st. — Fragmentary simple declarative. "This is a notice of a mortgage sale." The 
subscribers' names are fragmentary compound : '• P. Gridley, who is the mortgagee, ie the, 
&c." "J. G. Coye, who is the attorney, is, 6-c.*' 



SEC. XXVU. THE SHIPWRECK. 

At half-past eight o'clock, hen-coops, spars, 

1 And all things, for a chance, had been cast loose, 
That still could keep afloat the struggling tars ; 

For yet they strove, although of no great use. 
There was no light in heaven but a few stars : 

2 The boats put off, o'ercrowded with their crews : 
She gave a heel, and then a lurch to port, 

And going down head-foremost — sunk, in short. 

Then rose from sea to sky the wild farewell ; 

Then shrieked the timid, and stood still the brave; 
Then some leaped overboard, with dreadful yell, 

3 As eager to anticipate their grave ; 

And the sea yawned around her like a hell ; 

And down she sucked with her the whirling wave, 
Like one who grapples with his enemy, 
And strives to strangle him before he die. 

And first a universal shriek there rushed, 

Louder than the loud ocean, like a crash 
Of echoing thunder ; and then all was hushed, 

4 Save the wild wind and the remorseless dash 
Of billows ; but at intervals there gushed, 

Accompanied with a convulsive splash, 
A solitary shriek : the bubbling cry 
Of some strong swimmer in his agony. Byron. 

Sent. 1st. — Decl. loose, with two parts : the second part single compact, 1st form. Sent. 2d. 
- -Decl. loose with three parts : last part mixed : " and when going, t hen." Sent. 3d.— The 
same with five parts : the third, single compact : " so some, as eager," &c. Sent. 4th. — The 
same with three parts : the first has a mixture of single compact : louder— than : the second 
is close : the third, imperfect loose. 



EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 341 



SEC. XXVm. THE FALL OF THE OPPRESSOR A SOURCE OF CONSOLATION 
TO GOOD MEN. 

Oh ! how comely it is, and how reviving 
To the spirits of just men, long oppressed, 
When God, into the hands of their deliverer 
Puts invincible might, 

1 To quell the mighty of the earth : the oppressor : 
The brute and boisterous force of violent men, 
Hardy and industrious to support 

Tyrannic power, but raging to pursue 

The righteous, and all such as honor truth ! 

He all their ammunition 

And feats of war defeats : 

With plain heroic magnitude of mind, 

And celestial vigor armed, 

2 Their armories and magazines contemns : 
Renders them useless ; while 

With winged expedition, 

Swift as the lightning glance, he executes 

His errand on the wicked ; who, surprised, 

Lose their defence, distracted and amazed. Milton. 

Sentence 1st. — An indefinite interrogative single compact : correlative words then — when. 
The second part is imperfect loose, with three sub-parts ; the last of which contains a compact 
conclusion : correlative words, indeed — but. 



SEC. XXIX. THE POWER OF VERSE TO PERPETUATE. 

'Tis not a pyramid of marble stone, 
Though high as our ambition ; 

1 'Tis not a tomb cut out in brass, which can 
Give life unto the ashes of a man ; 

But verses only : they shall fresh appear 
Whilst there are men to read or hear. 
When time shall make the lasting brass decay, 
And eat the pyramid away ; 

2 Turning that monument wherein men trust 
Their names, to what it keeps, poor dust ; 
Then shall the epitaph remain and be 

New graven in eternity. Cowley. 

Sentence 1st.— Double compact : 1st and 3d part expressed : the first part has two mem- 
bers : the first member single compact : yet — though : the second, close. The second part of 
the double comp. beginning with but, loose perf. Sent. 2d.— A single compact : when— then. 

29* 



342 EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 



SEC. XXX. IMAGINATION THE RULING FACULTY OF THE LUNATIC, THE 
LOVER, AND THE POET. 

1 The lunatic, the lover, and the poet 
Are of imagination all compact.* 

One sees more devils than vast hell can hold ; 
That is the madman : the lover, all as frantic, 
Sees Helen's beauty in a brow of Egypt : 

2 The poet's eye, in a fine phrensy rolling, 

Doth glance from heaven to earth, from earth to heaven ; 

And, as imagination bodies forth 

The forms of things unknown, the poet's pen 

Turns them to shapes, and gives to airy nothing 

A local habitation and a name. Shakspeare. 



SEC. XXXI. THE LANDING OF THE ^ILGRDIS. 

The breaking waves dashed high 

On a stern and rock-bound coast ; 
And the woods, against a stormy sky, 

Their giant branches tossed ; 

1 And the heavy night hung dark 

The hills and waters o'er ; 
When a band of exiles moored their bark, 

On the wild New-England shore. 
Not as the conqueror comes, 

They, the true-hearted came ; 
Not with the roll of the stirring drums, 

And the trumpet that sings of fame ; 

2 Not as the flying come, 

In silence and in fear ; 
They shook the depths of the desert's gloom, 
With their hymns of lofty cheer. 

3 Amidst the storm they sang ; 

And the stars heard and the sea ! 
And the sounding aisles of the dim woods rang 
To the anthem of the free ! 

4 The ocean-eagle soared 

From his nest by the white wave's foam ; 
And the rocking pine of the forest roared : — 

This was their welcome home ! Hemans. 

Sent. 1st. — Then the breaking, &c, when. Sent. 2d. — Double compact 
* J. e. composed. 



EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 343 



SEC. XXXH. BOLDNESS AND PERSEVERANCE IN THE CAUSE OP JUSTICE 
ONLY, COMMENDABLE. 

Dare nobly then ; but, conscious of your trust, 

1 As ever warm and bold, be ever just ; 

Nor court applause in these degenerate days : 
The villain's censure is extorted praise. 

2 But chief, be steady in a noble end, 

And show mankind that truth has yet a friend. 

3 'Tis mean for empty praise of wit to write, 

As foplings grin to show their teeth are white ; 

To brand a doubtful folly with a smile, 

Or madly blaze unknown defects, is vile : 

'Tis doubly vile, when, but to prove your art, 

You fix an arrow in a blameless heart. Pope. 

Sent. 3d. — If " 'tis mean for empty praise, &c, then 'tis doubly mean, &c." I am not sure 
but tbat indeed— but would express the sense better. 



SEC. XXXHI. THE CONSOLATION OF VIRTUE IN AFFLICTION. 

Cyriac, this three years day, these eyes, though clear 
To outward view, of blemish or of spot, 

1 Bereft of light their seeing have forgot ; 
Nor to their idle orbs doth sight appear 

Of sun, or moon, or star, (throughout the year,) 
Or man, or woman. Yet I argue not 

2 Against Heaven's hand or will, nor bate a jot 
Of heart or hope ; but still bear up and steer 

3 Right onward. What supports me, dost thou ask ? 
The conscience, friend, to have lost them overplied 

4 In liberty's defence : mv noble task, 

Of which all Europe rings from side to side. 

5 This thought might lead me through the world's vain mask, 
Content though blind, had I no better guide. Milton. 

Sent. 2d. — Not equivalent to neither : whole sentence perfect loose. Sent. 3d. — A definite 
close interrogative transposed. Sent. 5th. — Single compact declarative, thud form ; correla- 
tive words, yet — though : " content though blind," a circumstance, which may be regarded as 
making the whole a mixed sentence. 



SEC. XXXIV. MUSIC AND LOVE. 



If music be the food of love, play on : 
1 Give me excess of it ; that, surfeiting, 
The appetite may sicken, and so die. 
That strain again : it had a dying fall : 



344 EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 

2 0, it came o'er my ear, like the sweet south, 
That breathes upon a bank of violets : 

3 Stealing and giving odor. — Enough : no more ; 
Tis not so sweet now as it was before. — 

Shakspeare. 

Sent. 3d. — JVo more, and what follows, form the first and second part of a double compact ; 
but it is to be observed that the second part, is in turn the first part of another, of which the 
other parts are suppressed. u Play no more, for therefore it is not, &c." The delivery should 
correspond. 



SEC. XXXV. THE LOVE OF NATURE. 

1 The love of Nature, and the scenes she draws, 

Is Nature's dictate. Strange ! there should be found 
Who, self-imprisoned in their proud saloons, 
Renounce the odors of the open field 
For the unscented fictions of the loom ; 

2 Who, satisfied with only pencilled scenes, 
Prefer to the performance of a God 
The inferior wonders of an artist's hand ! 
Lovely, indeed, the mimic works of art, 

But Nature's works far lovelier. Cowper. 

Sent. 2d. — A mixed sentence: as a whole comp. decl. single compact of the third form: 
correlative words, therefore — because: the first part fragmentary: it is being suppressed be- 
fore strange, and that after it. Therefore it is strange that, &c. — because lovely indeed, &c. 
The second part is compact, of the first form, and has the correlative words indeed — but, in- 
stead of though — yet, which would be more accurate. The exclamation point after strange*, 
represents the comma: after hand, the semicolon. 



SEC. XXXVI. DEATH, A FRIEND OF THE GOOD. 

1 I will teach the world 

2 To thank thee. Who are thine accusers ? 3 Who ? 

4 The living ! they who never felt thy power, 
And know thee not ! The curses of the wretch 

5 Whose crimes are rife, his sufferings, when thy hand 
Is on him, and the hour he dreads is come, 

Are writ among thy praises. But the good : 

6 Does he, whom thy kind hand dismissed to peace, 
Upbraid the gentle violence that took off 

His fetters, and unbound his prison cell ? Bryant. 

Sent. 3d. — Who should be delivered with the rising slide. (See Rule III. Exception.) Sent. 
4th— A compound loose definite interrogative. Sent. 6th.— A semi-interrogative, with a per- 
fect loose construction of the parts. 



EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 345 



SEC. XXXVH. A SISTER'S INTERCESSION. 

1 Isab. To-morrow ! 2 0, that's sudden ! 3 Spare him ! spare 
him ! 

4 He's not prepared for death ! Even for our kitchens, 

5 We kill the fowls of season ; shall we serve Heaven, 
With less respect than we do minister 

6 To our gross selves ? Good, good my lord, bethink you: 
Who is it that hath died for this offence ? — 

*I There's many have committed it ? 

Ang. The law hath not been dead, though it hath slept : 
8 Those many had not dared to do that evil, 

If the first man that did the edict infringe, 

Had answered for his deed. ShaJcspeare. 

Sent. 1st. — Fragment, simp. def. interrog. excl. Sent. 3d. — Single compact, third form : there' 
fore — because he's not. Sent. 5th. — " If even, then shall we, &c." Sent. 1th. — A compound 
close indirect interrogative. Sent. 8th. — " Yet the law, though it, &c." " Then those, if the, 
&c." 



SEC. XXXVm. WHAT CONSTITUTES A STATE. 

1 What constitutes a State ? 

Not high-raised battlements or labored mound, 

Thick wall or moated gate ; 
Not cities proud, with spires and turrets crowned ; 

Not bays and broad-arm ports, 
Where, laughing at the storm, rich navies ride ; 

Not starred and spangled courts, 
Where low-browed baseness wafts perfume to pride ; 

No ; men : high-minded men : 

2 With powers, as far above dull brutes endued 

In forest, brake, or den, 
As beasts excel cold rocks and brambles rude : 

Men, who their duties know, 
But know their rights ; and, knowing, dare maintain : 

Prevent the long-aimed blow, 
And crush the tj^rant, while they rend the chain. 

These constitute a state ; 

3 And sovereign law, that state's collected will, 

O'er thrones and globes elate 
Sits empress : crowning good : repressing ill. 
Smit by her sacred frown, 

4 The fiend discretion* like a vapor sinks ; 

* Arbitrary power. 



346 EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 

And e'en the all-dazzling crown 
Hides his faint rays, and at her bidding shrinks. 

5 Such was this heaven-loved isle : 
Than Lesbos fairer, and the Cretan shore ! 

6 No more shall freedom smile ? 

Shall Britons languish and be men no more ? 
Since all must life resign, 

7 Those sweet rewards which decorate the brave 

'Tis folly to decline, 
And steal inglorious to the silent grave. 

Sir William Jones. 

Sentence 1st.— A compound declarative double compact, with first and third proposition : the 
first having five members ; and the second being perfect loose in four fragmentary parts ; of 
which the fourth contains an imperfect loose. ^V«, the fifth member of the first part, is the 
equivalent of the other four. (See Ride VIII. 3, Classification, Double Compact. General Note, 
and Simp. Declarative, yes, no.) 

Sentence ith. — A compound declarative single compact, third form: correlative words when 
— then. 

Sentence 1th. — A compound declarative single compact, second form: correlative words 
since — therefore. 



SEC. XXXIX. A STORY LOSES NOTHING IN ITS PROGRESS. 

Two honest tradesmen meeting in the strand, 

1 One took the other briskly by the hand : 

" Hark ye," said he : " 'tis an odd story this, 

2 About the crows !" — " I don't know what it is," 

3 Replied his friend. — " No ! 4 I'm surprised at that; 
Where I come from, it is the common chat. 

5 But you shall hear : an odd affair, indeed ! 
And that it happened, they are all agreed. 
(Not to detain you from a thing so strange,) 

6 A gentleman, that lives not far from 'Change, 
This week, in short, (as all the alley knows,) 
Taking a puke, has thrown up three black crows." 

1 " Impossible !" — 8 " Nay, but it's really true ; 

I had it from good hands, and so may you." — 
9 "From whose, I pray?" — 10 So having named the man, 

Straight to inquire his curious comrade ran. 

11 "Sir, did you tell — ?" relating the affair. — 

" Yes, sir : I did ; and if it's worth your care, 

12 Ask Mr. Such-a-one : he told it me ; — 

But, by-the-by, 'twas two black crows : not three." 

13 Resolved to trace so wondrous an event, 
Whip to the third, the virtuoso went. 

14 " Sir " — and so forth. — " Why, yes: the thing is fact, 
Though, in regard to number, not exact : 



EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 347 

15 It was not two black crows; 'twas only one : 
The truth of that, you may depend upon : 
The gentleman himself told me the case." — 

16 "Where may I find him?" — 17 " Why, — in such a place." 

18 Away he goes; and, having found him out, — 
" Sir, be so good as to resolve a doubt." 

19 Then to his last informant he referred, 

And begged to know, if true what he had heard. 

20 "Did you, sir, throw up a black crow?" — 21 "Not I!" — 

22 " Bless me ! how people propagate a lie ! 

23 Black crows have been thrown up, three, two, and one, 
And here I find, at last, all comes to none ! 

24 Did you say nothing of a crow at all ?" — 

25 " Crow ? — crow ? — 26 Perhaps I might, now I recall 

27 The matter over." — "And pray, sir: what was it?" — 
" Why, I was horrid sick, and, at the last, 

28 I did throw up, (and told my neighbor so,) 
Something that was as black, sir, as a crow." Byrom. 

Sentence 1 st. — " When two, &c, then one, &c." The entire sentence semi-interrogative : 
concluding with a simp, indir. interrog. excl. Sentence 3d. — JVb is a comp. close def. interrog. 
excl. " Do you say you don't, &c. !" Sentence 1th. — " Therefore Pm surprised, &c, for where, 
&c." Sentence 15th. — And used for but. Sentence 11th. — The circumstance "relating, &c," 
oheys the law of the preceding slide. Sentence 12th. — The last part of this, is an inverted dou- 
ble compact. Sentence 14th. — Fragmentary. " Sir, did you say that threw up, &c." (See 

Conventional Emphasis.) Sentence 25th. — A loose def. interrog. Sentence 26th. — The first part 
of sing, compact disjoined by the question which follows from the second part in Sentence 
28th"; which see. "Therefore I might, &c, because I was horrid, &c" 



SEC XL. HOW WE SHOULD LIVE. 

So live, that when thy summons comes to join 

The innumerable caravan, that moves 

To that mysterious realm, where each shall take 

His chamber in the silent halls of death ; 

Thou go not like the quarry slave at night, 

Scourged to his dungeon, but, sustained and soothed 

By an unfaltering trust, approach thy grave, 

Like one who wraps the drapery of his couch 

About him, and lies down to pleasant dreams. — Bryant. 

A mixed sentence, combining two single and one double compact. " So live, that when 
thy summons, &c. — then thou go not, &c. — but, &c." 



SEC. XLI. THE DYING CHRISTIAN. 

1 Vital spark of heavenly flame ! 
Quit, oh quit, this mortal frame ! 



348 EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 

2 Trembling, hoping, lingering, flying ; — 
Oh the pain, the bliss, of dying ! 

3 Cease, fond Nature ! cease thy strife, 
And let me languish into life. 

4 Hark ! 5 They whisper : angels say, 
Sister spirit, come away. 

What is this absorbs me quite : 

6 Steals my senses : shuts my sight : 
Drowns my spirits : draws my breath? 

7 Tell me, my soul ! can this be Death ? 
The world recedes : it disappears : 

8 Heaven opens on my eyes : my ears 
With sounds seraphic ring : 

Lend, lend your wings ! I mount ! I fly ! 

9 Grave ! where is thy victory ? 

Death ! where is thy sting ? Pope. 

There is great danger, in the delivery of this piece, of falling into a whining, canting, mead* 
ured manner. Read it, if possible, as you would read prose. 



SEC. XLn. THE STRATAGEM OF A THIEF. 

In Broad-street buildings on a winter's night, 
Snug by his parlor fire, a gouty wight 

Sat all alone : with one hand rubbing 
His feet, rolled up in fleecy hose ; 
With t' other he'd beneath his nose 

The Public Leger ; in whose columns grubbing, 
He noted all the sales of hops, 
Ships, shops, and slops, 

1 Gum, galls, and groceries, ginger, gin, 
Tar, tallow, turmeric, turpentine, and tin ; 

When, lo ! a decent personage in black, 
Entered and most politely said, 

" Your footman, sir, has gone his nightly track 
To the King's Head, 
And left your door ajar ; which I 
Observed in passing by, 

And thought it neighborly to give you notice." 

2 " Ten thousand thanks : how very few get, 

In time of danger, 

Such kind attention from a stranger ! 

3 Assuredly that fellow's throat is 
Doomed to a final drop at Newgate ? 

4 He knows, too, (the unconscious elf,) 



EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 349 

That there's no soul at home except myself." 

" Indeed ! replied the stranger, (looking grave,) 
Then he's a double knave : 

He knows that rogues and thieves by scores 

Nightly beset unguarded doors ; 
And see how easily might one 

5 Of these domestic foes, 
Even beneath your very nose, 

Perform his knavish tricks : 

Enter your room, as I have done, 

Blow out your candles thus, — and thus, — 
Pocket your silver candlestick, 

And walk off — thus." 
So said, so done : he made no more remark, 

6 Nor waited for replies, 

But marched off with his prize : 
Leaving the gouty merchant in the dark. 

Sent. 1st.— Bed. perf. loose with five parts : the first ending at alone, simple decl. ; the 
second, single compact ; as with one, so with the other ; the third, single compact, 3d form, 
2d var. when grubbing, then he noted : the fourth, close : the fifth, the same. Sent. 2d. — 
Semi-interrog. excl. Sent. 3d. — Indirect interrog. Sent. 4th. — Close. Sent. 5th. — Decl. perf. 
loose : single compact in the first part ; if— then ; close in the second ; imperf. loose in the 
third. Sent. 6th. — Perfect loose decl. : single compact in 1st part, as said, so done ; the first so 
for as ; double comp. in the second part ; 1st and 3d part expressed ; simple decl. in the last 
part. 



SEC. XLIH. THE SOLILOQUY OF KING RICHARD m. 

1 Give me another horse : — bind up my wounds : — 
Have mercy, Jesu : — soft : I did but dream ? — 

2 0, coward conscience, how dost thou afflict me ! — 

3 The lights burn blue. — 4 It is now dead midnight. — 

5 What do I fear ? 6 Myself? 7 There's none else by ? 

8 Richard loves Richard ; that is, I am I. 

9 Is there a murderer here ? -10 No : yes ; I am. 

11 Then fly. 12 What ? 13 From myself? 14 Great reason ; why ? 
15 Lest I revenge. 16 What ? 11 Myself on myself? 
18 I love myself? 19 Wherefore? 20 For any good 
That I myself have done unto myself ? 

21 0, no ; alas ! I rather hate myself, 

For hateful deeds committed by myself. 

22 I am a villain : yet I lie ; I am not. 

Fool, of thyself speak well : — fool, do not flatter : — 

23 My conscience hath a thousand several tongues ; 
And every tongue brings in a several tale ; 
And every tale condemns me for a villain. 
Perjury, perjury, in the highest degree, 

24 Murder, stern murder, in the direst degree, 

30 



350 EXERCISES ON PARAGRAPHS. 

Throng to the bar, crying all, Guilty ! guilty ! 

25 I shall despair. — There is no creature loves me, 

26 And, if I die, no soul will pity me : 

Nay ; wherefore should they ; since that I myself 
Find in myself no pity to myself ? — 
Methought the souls of all that I had murdered 

27 Came to my tent, and every one did threat 
To-morrow's vengeance on the head of Richard. ShaTcspeare. 

Sentence 1st. — A semi-interrogative, with a loose construction: the interrogative portion, in- 
direct, of the third kind. Sentence 1th. — An indirect simple interrogative of the third kind. 
Sentence 10th. — " Therefore yes, fur I am." Sentence 12th. — "Fly from what?" Sentence 
13th. — "Shall I fly from myself?" Sentence 14th. — "I have great reason, indeed, to fly from 
myself, but why 5" Sentence 16th. — " Revenge what 5" Sentence 18th. — An indirect interroga- 
tive. — Sentence 19th. — " Wherefore do I love myself?" Sentence 20th. — "Do I love myself tor 
any good, &c. V" A close definite interrog. Sentence list. — "O, therefore, no, for alas! I 
rather, &c." Sentence 22d. — " Therefore I lie, for I am not." Sentence 26th. — " As there is no 
creature, &c, so if I die, &c. ;" and " as they will not, so wherefore should they." Sentence 
27 1 A.—" As the souls of all, &c, so every one." 



TABLE OP CONTENTS 



CHAPTER FIRST. 

PAGE 

Pronunciation 11 

Sec. I. Articulation 11 

Vowels 12 

Diphthong 18 

Consonants 23 

SecH. Accent 29 

1. Articulators 29 

2. Discriminative 29 

3. Rhetorical 30 

CHAPTER SECOND. 

Punctuation 31 

Sec. I. Pauses of sense 31 

1. Comma 32 

2. Semicolon 36 

3. Colon 38 

4. Period 41 

5. Double period 42 

Sec. H. Pauses denoting the nature of 

the sentence 46 

1. Interrogation 47 

2. Exclamation 47 

Sec. m. The pause of unusual construc- 
tion, &.c 49 

CHAPTER THIRD. 

Modulation 52 

1. Key 52 

2. Vocal evolutions or variations 53 

1. Sweeps 54 

2. Bend 54 

3. Slides 55 

4. Closes 56 

3. Force 57 

4. Rate 58 

CHAPTER FOURTH. 

Classification and description of sen- 
tences 60 

Sec. I. Simple Sentences ; punctuation 62 

Class I. Declarative 63 

Digression on Yes, No, 

Well 63 

Class II. Interrogative 67 

1. Definite 67 

2. Indefinite 68 

3. Indirect 68 

Class HI. Exclamatory 69 

1. Declarative 70 

2. Interrogative 70 



PAGE 

3. Compellative 71 

4. Spontaneous 72 

Sec. H. Compound sentences: described 

and punctuated 72 

Class I. Declarative 78 

Class II. Interrogative 83 

1. Definite 84 

2. Indefinite 86 

3. Indirect 87 

4. Double ■ 88 

5. Semi-interrogative 88 

Class HI. Exclamatory 89 

1. Declarative 89 

2. Interrogative 93 

3. Compellative 97 

4. Semi-exclamatory 98 

Mixed sentence, circumstance, paren- 
thesis 99 

CHAPTER FIFTH. 

Emphasis 105 

Sec. I. Nature of emphasis in general 105 

I. Common emphasis 105 

II. Antithetic emphasis 110 

III. Deferred emphasis 112 

IV. Conventional emphasis . . 113 
Sec. H. Vocal effect of emphasis 113 

CHAPTER SIXTH. 

The bend, sweeps, slides and closes 

applied : general observations 120 

Rule I. for the delivery of simple de- 
clarative sentences 121 

II. for the delivery of simple defi- 
nite interrogative 125 

III. for the delivery of simple in- 

definite interrogative 129 

IV. for the delivery of simple indi- 

rect interrogative 132 

V. for the delivery of simple ex- 
clamatory 136 

VI. for the delivery of compound 

declarative close sentences. • 158 
VH. for the delivery of compound 
declarative single compact 

sentences 166 

VHI. for the delivery of compound 
declarative double compact 

sentences 194 

IX. for the delivery of compound 

declarative loose sentences . 201 



352 



TABLE OF CONTENTS. 



PAGE 

Rule X. for the delivery of compound 

interrogative definite close. • 221 
XI. for the delivery of compound 
interrogative definite com- 
pact 223 

XII. for the delivery of compound 

interrogative definite loose- • 226 
XHI. for the delivery of compound 

interrogative "indefinite close 235 
XIV. for the delivery of compound 
interrogative indefinite com- 
pact 238 

XV. for the delivery of compound 

interrogative "indefinite loose 240 
XVI. for the delivery of compound 

interrogative "indirect 249 

XVII. for the delivery of compound 

interrogative "double 250 

XVIII. for the delivery of compound 

semi-interrogative 252 

XIX. for the delivery of compoimd 

exclamatory 269 

XX. for the delivery of the mixed 

sentence 361 

XXI. for the delivery of the circum- 
stance '• 301 

XXII. for the delivery of the paren- 
thesis 301 

CHAPTER SEVENTH. 
Exercises on paragraphs, or sen- 
tences in continuous discourse-. 304 

A curtain lecture 335 

A good story loses nothing in its progress 346 

A part of Emmet's defence 330 

A political pause 329 

A sister's intercession 345 

A twofold peace 316 

Boldness and perseverance in the cause 

of justice 343 

Burning of the Fame 334 



page 

Death of Altamont 331 

Death a friend to the good 344 

Death of Hamilton 332 

Dishonorable means never to be em- 
ployed 338 

Evils of the old confederation 323 

Hamlet's instruction to the players 305 

Hamlet's soliloquy 309 

How we should nve 347 

If (iod be for you, tear nothing 325 

Imagination, the ruling facidty in the lu- 
natic, the lover, and the poet 342 

Important results from the sufferings of 

the Pilgrims 325 

Landing of the Pilgrims 342 

Music and love 343 

Notice of a mortgage sole 339 

Our wishes help to deceive us 334 

Perpetuity of the Union 318 

Results of free discussion 321 

Sorrow for the dead 327 

Speech of Brutus 313 

Stratagem of a thief 348 

The advocates of Charles I. rebiiked .... 324 

The consolation of afflicted virtue 343 

The dying CI iristian 347 

The fall of the oppressor a source of con- 
solation 341 

The influence of elegant literature 322 

The love of Nature 344 

The power of verse to perpetuate 341 

The proper limits of benevolence 316 

The shipwreck 340 

The soliloquv of Richard HI. 349 

The value of public faith 317 

Truth invincible if left to grapple with 

error on equal terms 321 

Vehement attack on the Alien and Sedi- 
tion Law 322 

Virtue and piety conformity to Nature. • • 319 
What constitutes a State 345 



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